Meeting with 9 Redevelopment Project Associations in Gangnam Area
Listening to Needs for System Improvement and Difficulties
Preparing System Improvements for Consent Rate to 'Shorten Project Duration'
The Seoul Metropolitan Government is promoting a system improvement to ease the consent requirement for proposing maintenance plans from 60% to 50% in complexes preparing for reconstruction, enabling faster initiation of maintenance planning.
On the 7th, a 'Seoul City - Maintenance Project Association Meeting' was held in the conference room on the 8th floor of Seoul City Hall, attended by Yoo Chang-soo, Deputy Mayor for Administration of Seoul, and the heads of nine reconstruction and redevelopment associations in the Gangnam area.
On the 9th, Seoul announced that on the 7th it met with union heads and residents from nine districts in the Gangnam area at Seoul City Hall to listen to their difficulties and discuss ways to expedite maintenance projects.
The meeting was attended by Yoo Chang-soo, Deputy Mayor for Administration 2, Han Byung-yong, Director of the Housing Office, Kim Jang-soo, Director of Architectural Planning, and union heads from five reconstruction sites including Apgujeong 2 District, Yongsan Hangang Mansion, Sinbanpo 2nd, Miseong Clover, and Bangbae 5 District, as well as four redevelopment sites including Singil 2 District, Bongcheon 14 District, Heukseok 11 District, and Noryangjin 4 District.
As a result of communication with residents of maintenance project sites in both Gangbuk and Gangnam areas, since both regions identified 'shortening project duration' as the most important factor, Seoul decided to proceed with system improvements. The related standards will be revised to relax the consent requirement from the current 60% of landowners to 50%, allowing complexes preparing for reconstruction to propose maintenance plans more swiftly.
Additionally, during the maintenance plan establishment stage, the ‘Rapid Integrated Planning’ system will be utilized, and at the project implementation plan approval stage, the ‘Integrated Review’ system will be applied to ensure the project progresses quickly. For projects after groundbreaking, conflicts such as construction costs will be timely mediated to support uninterrupted progress until completion.
Seoul has been continuously improving the system, introducing an advisory method (Fast Track) last year to further shorten project duration under the Rapid Integrated Planning system, and recently implementing a ‘Step-by-Step Processing Deadline System.’ Yeouido Daegyo Apartment and Jamsil Jugong 5 Complex completed designation as maintenance zones in about one year by utilizing the Rapid Integrated Planning system.
At the meeting, the unions proposed system improvements including △relaxation of various environmental impact assessment standards such as eco-friendly and renewable energy criteria △minimizing unnecessary costs during appraisal △realistic adjustment of rental housing purchase costs.
Many unions raised concerns that due to various environmental impact assessment standards, building designs sometimes deviate from the originally intended direction, and questioned the effectiveness of the eco-friendly facilities required by the standards.
There was also an opinion that appraisal items required at each procedural stage should be evaluated in a single appraisal to prevent cost waste, and guidelines should be created accordingly. Seoul plans to promptly reflect improvable aspects and continuously communicate with the central government for matters requiring legal amendments to establish necessary systems.
Districts preparing for changes in maintenance plans or project implementation plans, such as Apgujeong 2 District, Sinbanpo 2nd, and Bongcheon 14 District, requested Seoul to promptly proceed with administrative procedures in the future. Districts like Bangbae 5 District, Singil 2 District, and Noryangjin 4 District, which recently completed changes in maintenance or project implementation plans, expressed gratitude for the swift administrative processing.
Yoo Chang-soo, Deputy Mayor for Administration 2 of Seoul, said, "Maintenance projects are large-scale undertakings that transform not only old houses into new ones but also the surrounding area and city. Although complex procedures and various interests are involved, if Seoul and residents work as a ‘one team’ to push the projects forward, there will be good results in both speed and outcomes. We will continue to communicate with residents and improve necessary areas going forward."
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