The Key Contributor to Preventing Construction Halt of 'Cheongdam Samik Reconstruction' is the 'Gangnam-gu Completion Management TF'

Formed TF with Union, Construction Company, District Office Staff, and External Experts
Reached Agreement Through 18 Relay Meetings Over 45 Days After Construction Suspension Notice

Cheongdam Samik Apartment, built in 1980, will be reconstructed with a total of 1,296 households based on the concept of social mix.

Gangnam-gu, Seoul (District Mayor Jo Seong-myeong) announced on the 22nd that it has been operating a task force (TF) to manage the timely completion of reconstruction apartments starting this year, actively mediating the construction halt conflict of the Cheongdam Samik Apartment reconstruction project (Cheongdam Le El). As a result, an agreement between the association and the construction company was reached on the 15th, preventing delays in move-in at an early stage.

Until now, apartments nearing completion have suffered from delays due to incomplete internal work and infrastructure. To resolve these issues, the district is promoting proactive administration by operating the TF for reconstruction apartment complexes about a year before the completion deadline.

The TF manages whether the construction progresses sequentially, identifies delays in external processes compared to internal ones, diagnoses the causes, and supports the association and construction company to resolve issues quickly. It consists of association members, construction company representatives, district officials, and external experts. Currently, it operates for the Hongsil Apartment reconstruction project (scheduled for completion in January 2025) and the Cheongdam Samik Apartment reconstruction project (scheduled for October 2025).

To prevent the construction halt of Cheongdam Samik Apartment, the district effectively operated the TF to mediate between the association and the construction company. Conflicts over delays in general sales, extension of construction periods, upgrading of finishing materials, and financial costs flared up from early this year. The district held four mediation meetings from February to May to listen to the main dispute reasons and prevent the risk of construction stoppage.

Nevertheless, when the construction company notified at the end of May that construction would stop from September 1 this year, the district expanded the mediation meetings. Meetings were held step-by-step, including expert preliminary meetings with only specialists from relevant fields of both sides, consultative body meetings including the association’s board members, meetings with urban planning officials dispatched from Seoul City, lawyers, urban administration expert coordinators, and mediation between lawyers of both parties.

After 18 relay meetings from June to this month following the construction halt notice, a final agreement between the association and the construction company was reached on the 15th. Cheongdam Samik plans to start the general sales procedure after a general meeting resolution at the end of next month.

If the agreement between the association and the construction company is delayed and construction stops, both parties will suffer damages. Construction stoppage also causes additional construction costs, increasing the additional contributions required from association members.

For example, in the case of the Dunchon Jugong reconstruction project (Olympic Park Foreon) in Gangdong-gu, where construction was halted for six months in 2022, association members had to bear an additional cost of about 100 million KRW per household. In the case of Cheongdam Samik, the district’s proactive mediation and agreement between both sides prevented an increase in additional contributions and indefinite delays in move-in.

The completion management TF previously reviewed the overall construction timetable of Cheongdam Samik Apartment, supported the ordering of delayed external infrastructure services (landscaping, civil engineering, roads), and helped shorten the construction period by mediating conflicts between landscaping and traffic companies over sidewalk construction.

District Mayor Jo Seong-myeong stated, “We timely operated the TF to prevent damages caused by completion delays, actively listened to the opinions of the association and construction company, and mediated proactively. We will continue to support the smooth progress of reconstruction construction through active conflict management.”