Banghak-dong 685 Redevelopment Project, Up to 31-Story Apartment Construction
Developed as a Green Open Complex with Increased Public Facilities in the Area
Varied Building Heights Planned to Ensure Views of Bukhansan Mountain
The redevelopment project in the area around 685 Banghak-dong, near Banghak Station on Seoul Subway Line 1, will be promoted as a rapid integrated planning project. Upon completion of the redevelopment, a large apartment complex with approximately 1,600 households will be established.
On the 26th, the Seoul Metropolitan Government announced the confirmation of rapid integrated planning for the housing maintenance-type redevelopment project in the area of 685 Banghak-dong. The project site covers an area of 74,390㎡, with apartment buildings up to 31 floors and approximately 1,600 households. There are 754 landowners in the project area. It was selected as a candidate site for rapid integrated planning in December 2022.
The city expects to complete the maintenance plan decision within the year, starting with the initiation of the maintenance plan drafting procedure. By applying the simplified procedures of rapid integrated planning, the project period is also expected to be significantly shortened through integrated review by the Urban Planning Committee’s delegated subcommittee and the project implementation plan.
The project site is adjacent to Banghak Station. With the extension of the Ui-Sinseol Line, Banghak Station will become a double station area where Line 1 and the Ui-Sinseol Line intersect. Since the area adjoining the site can be upgraded to a neighborhood commercial area through the reorganization of the Banghak Station area district unit plan, significant changes are anticipated. Nearby, there are also Moa Town and other redevelopment project areas.
Site layout plan for the Rapid Integrated Planning Project in the Banghak-dong 685 area. This plan is an example and may be subject to change during the redevelopment planning process. (Data provided by Seoul City)
The project site is a low-rise residential area behind a semi-industrial zone developed through a land readjustment project in the 1970s, densely populated with aging single-family and multi-family houses. Residents are experiencing inconvenience due to narrow roads shared by pedestrians and vehicles and a lack of parking spaces.
In line with urban transformation trends, since May last year, the city has finalized the rapid integrated planning through multiple discussions and plan adjustments involving local governments, residents, and experts, including one-team meetings and expert advisory meetings, as well as communication with residents.
This planning proposal includes four principles: creating a green open complex, supplying insufficient public facilities within the area, improving the traffic system and pedestrian environment, and establishing a height plan considering views of Dobongsan and Bukhansan Mountains and the adjacent low-rise residential area.
A rest park and cultural park, serving as buffer spaces between the complex and the nearby neighborhood commercial area adjacent to Dobong-ro, which can be upgraded, were planned. While creating the entire complex as a green open complex, the road (Banghak-ro 2-gil) that used to pass through the complex was changed into a public pedestrian path connected to the cultural park to the north, the commercial street, and community facilities.
Necessary youth facilities for the area were established in the cultural park to the north of the site to support youth leisure activities. By constructing a multi-level public parking lot under the park, parking issues in the surrounding low-rise residential area were resolved, and the commercial district along Dodang-ro was revitalized. Additionally, facilities supporting senior citizen jobs were placed within the complex to be enjoyed together with local residents.
Considering the development projects in the site and surrounding areas, the widths of roads such as Dobong-ro 145-gil and Dodang-ro were expanded to enable smooth traffic flow. Since there was no separation of sidewalks on existing roads, pedestrian spaces were secured using building limit lines within the project site. A height plan was established to allow views of Dobongsan and Bukhansan Mountains. Mid- and low-rise buildings were arranged along the view axis extending from Banghak Station Exit 3 to Dodang-ro to enable views of Bukhansan, while various building heights were arranged within the complex to form a three-dimensional skyline.
Jo Nam-jun, head of the Seoul Metropolitan Government’s Urban Space Headquarters, said, "We planned a pleasant green open complex so that residents can enjoy necessary facilities together with neighbors and bring vitality inside and outside the complex." He added, "We will actively support the Banghak-dong area, which was an aging low-rise residential area, to establish itself as a representative residential area in the northeastern region."
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