After the Establishment of the Association Instead of After Approval of the Business Implementation Plan
"The Goal is Smooth Project Progress and Rapid Housing Supply"
[Asia Economy Reporter Onyu Lim] Seoul City will advance the timing of contractor selection to facilitate smooth redevelopment and reconstruction projects and expedite housing supply.
On the 2nd, Seoul City announced that it will improve the system to allow contractors to be selected after the approval of the establishment of the association in all maintenance project areas. In the case of the Rapid Integrated Planning promoted by Mayor Oh Se-hoon, contractors could be selected after the approval of the establishment of the association starting from July this year. The city decided to improve the system so that other maintenance project areas can also proceed quickly.
To this end, the city plans to revise the Urban and Residential Environment Maintenance Ordinance in cooperation with the Standing Committee of the Seoul Metropolitan Council during the first half of the year and apply it from July. Typically, redevelopment and reconstruction projects could select contractors only after the designation of the maintenance area, approval of the establishment of the association, and establishment of the project implementation plan. From now on, contractors can be selected earlier after the approval of the establishment of the association. A Seoul city official explained, "This will allow detailed construction plans by contractors and reviews of architecture/traffic to proceed simultaneously, accelerating project progress." Additionally, it will be possible to prepare funding plans and apply brand designs at the early stages of maintenance projects.
Furthermore, Seoul City will operate a 'Special System Improvement Team' to prevent side effects caused by early contractor selection. The special team plans to establish a method allowing contractors to participate in the project at the level of 'detailed bidding.' Originally, the ordinance induced 'detailed bidding,' which specifies the budget for each construction item based on design documents confirmed through project implementation plan approval, and to enhance transparency by selecting contractors after project implementation approval so that construction costs can be calculated by comparing details before and after design changes.
Yoo Chang-soo, Director of Housing Policy at Seoul City, said, "Early contractor selection is expected to bring several advantages such as smooth funding and improved project speed. We will continue to improve maintenance project systems and procedures to normalize redevelopment and reconstruction projects in Seoul, which have been stalled for over 10 years, and to supply high-quality housing."
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