Redevelopment of Old Buildings Near Transit Stations, Higher Floor Area Ratio Granted for 'Office·Hotel' Construction

Seoul City Holds Briefing Session on Transit-Oriented Development Revitalization Project
Expands Project Areas to Promote Transit-Oriented Complex Development
Incentives for Tourist Accommodation Facilities and Eco-Friendly Certification
Consent Rate for Site Selection Strengthened from 30% to 50%
Areas with Over 15% Buildings Under 10 Years Excluded

# An 8-story wedding hall near Mia Station will be transformed into a mixed-use residential complex with a 24-story apartment building and neighborhood living facilities. This area was designated as a Category 3 General Residential Zone with a floor area ratio (FAR) of 310%. Through the Station Area Activation Project, the FAR has been increased to 600%. Half of the increased FAR will be contributed to the public through facilities such as the Kiwoom Center and the Youth Culture Center.

# On the site of a 3-story commercial building near Boramae Station, a mixed-use residential building up to 20 stories high, including apartments, officetels, and office facilities, will be constructed. Being adjacent to the station area and surrounded by roads in a street block allowed the promotion of the Station Area Activation Project. The zoning was upgraded two levels from Category 3 General Residential Zone to Neighborhood Living Facilities, and the FAR increased from 130% to 600%. In return, a public health center and rental offices will be built as public contributions.

On the 18th, a second briefing session on the station area revitalization project was held at the Seosomun Welfare Building of Seoul City Hall.

Seoul City has rolled up its sleeves to encourage complex development in station areas through the 'Station Area Activation Project.' The project area has been expanded to a 350m radius around stations, and additional FAR incentives are granted for constructing tourism accommodation facilities. To prevent project delays due to resident conflicts, the consent requirement for the project area has been raised from the previous 30% to 50%.

On the 18th, the second briefing session on the Station Area Activation Project was held at the Seosomun Welfare Building in Seoul City Hall. The project involves upgrading zoning to increase FAR and receiving half of the increased FAR as public contributions in the form of office, commercial, rental housing, or other facilities needed by the community. Since its inception in 2019, the project aims to create a 'compact city' by developing high-density mixed-use areas around stations with high foot traffic and convenient transportation.

Currently, the Station Area Activation Project is underway at 41 locations. Construction has started at Mia Station and Boramae Station, and the projects for Gureung Station and Gangdong Station have completed official announcements. The project is particularly active in the southwestern region of Seoul.

Seoul City revised the project criteria in August last year and March this year. The project area, previously limited to a 250m radius from platforms, has been expanded to 350m around stations or along arterial roads (belt-shaped commercial zones). Since many projects focus on mixed-use residential complexes, additional incentives are granted if office (excluding officetels) or tourism accommodation facilities occupy more than 50% of the total FAR.

Shin Yoon-chul, Director of the Urban Regeneration Division at Seoul City, said, "Because strong incentives are provided, there are restrictions on requirements such as being located within 350m of the station, being surrounded by street blocks, or road frontage. If the conditions are met, we will do our best to support the projects and are also considering providing assistance through support organizations like SH Corporation."

For example, when zoning is upgraded from Category 3 General Residential Zone (FAR 250%) to General Commercial District (800%), applying all three additional FAR incentive items can increase the FAR by up to 1107.5 percentage points. Building tourism accommodation facilities grants up to 160 percentage points, applying creative and innovative design up to 110 percentage points, and obtaining green building certification up to 37.5 percentage points, totaling an additional 307.5 percentage points.

When promoting the Station Area Activation Project through 'urban maintenance-type redevelopment,' the consent requirements have become stricter than before. The consent rate for site selection was previously 30% but has been strengthened to 50%. The aging criteria have also been subdivided: at least 60% of buildings must be over 30 years old, at least 40% of parcels must be under 150㎡, or at least 50% of buildings must be two stories or less. Areas with more than 15% newly constructed buildings within the last 10 years are excluded.

Jang Su-jin, Team Leader of the Station Area Activation Team at Seoul City, explained, "There were many cases of extreme conflicts between residents for and against the projects. To minimize factors causing project delays from the planning stage, the requirements were strengthened to meet the 2030 Urban Basic Plan."

An official involved in the station area project in Daebang-dong criticized, "Excluding areas with more than 15% newly constructed buildings within 10 years is a toxic clause. Because of six buildings, about 40 buildings were prevented from participating in the project. I question why such a clause was created to make it impossible to move despite claims of easing restrictions."

For projects promoted as urban maintenance-type redevelopment, the 'area requirement' is between 1,500 and 10,000㎡. If the area exceeds this, project promotion is possible only after approval by the committee. Team Leader Jang said, "There is a regulation that areas over 10,000㎡ can be approved according to review standards. There are cases where a street block surrounded by one road is 20,000㎡, and opinions have been raised that two street blocks can be combined into one. If deemed appropriate through committee review, the area standard can be exceeded. The reason for setting 1,500㎡ as the standard is that it is the minimum unit where self-parking is possible."