Korail to Lead Urban Development of Yongsan International Business District

Korea Railroad Corporation (KORAIL) will take charge of the urban development of the Yongsan International Business District.

On the 19th, KORAIL announced that it has been designated as the project implementer for the Yongsan International Business District urban development project. The designation as the implementer is an administrative procedure in which the designating authority, Seoul City, officially recognizes KORAIL's capability to carry out the development project and appoints it as the main entity. Seoul City designated KORAIL and Seoul Housing and Communities Corporation (SH Corporation) as joint project implementers.

Exterior view of the railway office building located in Dong-gu, Daejeon. The railway office building houses KORAIL and the Korea Rail Network Authority. Photo by Korea Railroad Corporation

As project implementers, KORAIL and SH Corporation plan to carry out the approval and announcement of the implementation plan, including the detailed plan, environmental impact assessments, smart city and energy specialization plans, and then concretize a roadmap for groundbreaking in the second half of next year.

The urban development project began with the announcement of the development plan in February, followed by reviews by the Seoul City Urban Planning Committee in June and the Metropolitan Area Wide-area Transportation Committee in November. Recently, the development plan and district designation were officially announced.

On the 28th of last month, four organizations?KORAIL, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, Seoul City, and SH Corporation?signed a “Joint Agreement for the Successful Creation of the Yongsan International Business District,” agreeing to mutually cooperate on complex development including spatial planning, traffic improvements, and housing supply.

Han Moon-hee, President of KORAIL, said, “The Yongsan International Business District is a new standard model that performs all stages of planning, permits, marketing, and sales, rather than the conventional land-sale-centered development method. KORAIL, as both the project implementer and landowner, will take the helm and accelerate the development project.”