Selection of National Institute of Health Site as Balanced Development Pre-Negotiation Target
Improving Project Feasibility by Easing Redevelopment and Height District Regulations in Mia-dong
Seoul City announced on the 12th that the 'Gangbuk Area Grand Renovation - Gangbuk Renaissance Era' project, which is being promoted for balanced development in the Gangbuk area, has achieved results such as the introduction of a balanced development-type preliminary negotiation system and the commencement of construction of cultural facilities within nine months.
In March, the city announced the Gangbuk Renaissance Era project to transform the Gangbuk area into a "new economic city centered on jobs." This large-scale project covers eight districts in the northeast area (Gangbuk, Gwangjin, Nowon, Dobong, Dongdaemun, Seongdong, Seongbuk, Jungnang) and three districts in the northwest area (Mapo, Seodaemun, Eunpyeong), focusing on three tasks: △ future-oriented jobs △ pleasant residential environment △ emotional cultural spaces.
As a policy measure for the Gangbuk Area Grand Renovation, the city first introduced the balanced development-type preliminary negotiation system. This system improves the existing preliminary negotiation system to accelerate project implementation in the Gangbuk area. Depending on the ratio of job creation use introduced, the public contribution ratio is relaxed up to 50%, and incentives for the maximum floor area ratio are activated.
The city selected the former National Institute of Health site as the first target for the balanced development-type preliminary negotiation. This is a large-scale public idle site of 48,000㎡ adjacent to Bulgwang Station on subway lines 3 and 6, and it is expected to be transformed into a Creative Town by 2033.
In addition, the complex development project of the Kwangwoon University Station logistics site held a groundbreaking ceremony last October, and a large-scale job hub will be created with the relocation of HDC Hyundai Development Company headquarters in 2028. The Seoul Digital Bio City (S-DBC) development project is also underway.
Flexible redevelopment policies to improve the residential environment are also showing results. The city introduced Gangbuk area-tailored regulatory relaxation policies such as improvements to the 2030 Urban and Residential Environment Maintenance Basic Plan system and recognition of the current floor area ratio (the floor area ratio recorded in the current building register). Contents that can improve project feasibility, such as the introduction of a project feasibility correction factor, relaxation of floor area ratio standards in semi-industrial areas, and relaxation of public contribution rates, can now be applied to the 2030 Urban and Residential Environment Maintenance Basic Plan.
In July, the city finalized the rapid integrated planning for redevelopment in the Mia-dong area of Gangbuk-gu, establishing the first case of easing height district regulations. The area 791-2882 in Mia-dong was a project site with limitations in improving the residential environment due to terrain conditions and height district regulations, and after redevelopment, it will be reborn as a complex of up to 25 floors with 2,400 households.
In the case of the housing maintenance-type redevelopment project in the Seogye-dong 33 area of Yongsan-gu, the 'recognition of current floor area ratio' standard was applied for the first time last month, reducing the estimated individual burden by about 32 million KRW. This project site applied the current floor area ratio, relaxing the standard floor area ratio from 150% to 190%, raising the overall average standard floor area ratio by about 27%.
Large-scale cultural infrastructure expansion is also underway in the Gangbuk area. Seoul Arena, Seoul's first K-pop-centered complex cultural facility, held a groundbreaking ceremony in July with the goal of completion in 2027. In August, the Seoul Robot Artificial Intelligence Science Museum opened in Chang-dong, Dobong-gu. The Kim Byung-ju Library, the first municipal library in the northwest area, held a groundbreaking ceremony last month.
Seoul City will continue to promote various projects and institutional improvements for balanced development next year. To discover new growth hub projects in the Gangbuk area, project proposals will be accepted from autonomous districts until this month. After review by the city’s Balanced Development Committee, target projects will be selected in July next year.
Kim Seung-won, head of Seoul City's Balanced Development Headquarters, said, "We will continue to enhance the future competitiveness of the Gangbuk area through tailored regulatory innovation and bold incentives, creating a new milestone for balanced development between Gangnam and Gangbuk."
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