Seoul City Selects 6 Sites for SH-Participated Moa Town Public Management

A panoramic view of the low-rise residential area in Beondong, Gangbuk-gu, to be developed into Moa Town
[Photo by Yonhap News]

The Seoul Metropolitan Government, together with the Seoul Housing and Communities Corporation (SH Corporation), is taking direct action to support and revitalize the new low-rise residential area redevelopment model, the 'Moajutaek·Moataun' project.

On the 8th, Seoul announced that it has selected six sites as 'SH-participating Moataun Public Management Pilot Project Sites' to provide public support for areas wishing to promote the Moajutaek·Moataun project. Since 2021, the city has selected and managed 65 Moataun sites through public contests, but due to residents' low understanding of the project and limited capacity to promote it, individual project progress has been difficult. Therefore, the city decided to launch a pilot project where SH Corporation, a public institution specializing in housing construction and redevelopment projects, supports Moataun sites directly.

Seoul and SH Corporation prioritized selecting pilot project sites from among the Moataun application areas in autonomous districts where project promotion is expected to be difficult due to special local conditions such as height restrictions. Last month, the pilot project areas were reviewed from a total of 15 Moataun sites in 7 autonomous districts that applied in the 'SH-participating Moataun Public Management Demand Survey' targeting 65 Moataun sites.

Two adjacent Moataun sites, 'Seokgwan-dong in Seongbuk-gu' and 'Ssangmun-dong in Dobong-gu,' have faced difficulties in project promotion due to building height restrictions caused by proximity to cultural heritage sites and height limits. 'Wolgye 1-dong in Nowon-gu,' located in a hilly area, is designated as a Type 1 General Residential Area, and 'Pungnap-dong in Songpa-gu' also faces building height restrictions due to its location near cultural heritage sites, causing challenges.

The six sites selected for the public management pilot project are areas requiring building regulations and landscape preservation, such as near cultural heritage sites. SH Corporation plans to prepare and provide architectural planning proposals for all Moajutaek within the Moataun to improve project conditions and enhance the landscape. By applying the architectural planning proposals provided by SH Corporation during individual Moajutaek project implementation, architectural design can be guided, significantly improving project conditions and the landscape.

For these pilot sites, SH Corporation will assist the overall project to ensure smooth Moataun promotion by conducting ▲regional status analysis, ▲resident explanation and guidance, ▲feasibility analysis, ▲project implementation zone designation, ▲Moajutaek architectural planning, and ▲administrative support for association establishment.

Going forward, SH Corporation will play a role in thoroughly explaining the project, procedures, and supporting feasibility analysis of individual Moajutaek projects so that residents can fully understand and promote the Moajutaek·Moataun projects. They will provide information residents are curious about, such as expected project costs and estimated contributions.

Additionally, SH Corporation will facilitate amicable consultations with residents to designate 'project implementation zones' considering local conditions and feasibility. They will also provide administrative support such as collecting sequential consent forms for establishing associations for individual Moajutaek projects within Moataun and holding general meetings for association approval.

Through resident consultations, the designated 'individual project implementation zones' will be reflected in management plans established by autonomous districts. If individual Moajutaek residents wish to promote projects jointly with SH Corporation, joint project implementation will be supported through review and agreements.

Furthermore, for Moataun sites not selected for the SH-participating Moataun public management pilot project, the city plans to actively support project promotion by deploying coordinators who are private redevelopment experts to the sites.

Han Byung-yong, Director of Housing Policy at Seoul City, stated, "We will continue to support increasing residents' understanding, interest, and willingness to participate in the Moataun projects so that they can be promoted more quickly." He added, "We will continuously monitor resident satisfaction and outcomes of the pilot project and expand the 'SH-participating Moataun Public Management' project if necessary."