Seoul City Expands Rapid Integrated Planning to Include Urban Maintenance-Type Redevelopment

Rapid Integrated Planning Now Applied to Maintenance-Designated Areas in City Centers
Incentives and Integrated Review Introduced for Urban Maintenance

The Seoul city rapid integrated planning, which has been focused on housing maintenance projects, will now be expanded to urban maintenance-type redevelopment projects.

A dense area of office buildings in downtown Seoul. Photo by Younghan Heo younghan@

The city announced on the 9th that starting this year, it will begin rapid integrated planning and public maintenance plan establishment targeting maintenance-designated areas within the city center.

Urban maintenance-type redevelopment is a maintenance method implemented in commercial areas and others, aiming to restore and revitalize urban functions. The public sector first establishes plans regarding land use, infrastructure, and building density, after which private developers create detailed architectural plans for each individual project.

Recently, with the expansion of maintenance-designated areas within the city center in the '2030 Urban and Residential Environment Maintenance Basic Plan (Urban Maintenance-type section)', the city will apply rapid integrated planning to these target areas, enabling more systematic support for urban maintenance and revitalization.

Once a public maintenance plan applying rapid integrated planning is prepared, it can present new maintenance methods in response to policy changes such as ▲complexification of central functions ▲creation of green ecological urban centers ▲realization of mixed residential and workplace cities, as well as historical and cultural heritage. This will increase project feasibility and actively encourage private sector participation.

Additionally, the city will prepare an 'Urban and Architectural Integrated Design Guideline' reflecting landscape and street activation plans alongside existing land use and infrastructure-focused maintenance plans. Plans for lower floors considering historical and cultural heritage, local industries, and street characteristics, as well as public space plans such as open green spaces and pedestrian axes for realizing green ecological urban centers, will be developed concurrently.

After establishing the public maintenance plan, the city intends to simplify procedures and manage projects systematically by applying 'Rapid Integrated Planning Advisory (Fast Track)' to ensure swift project implementation.

Since the introduction of rapid integrated planning in September 2021, planning has been underway in a total of 169 locations, and the city expects that this decision will accelerate the maintenance of deteriorated city centers and the cultivation of future growth hubs.

Jo Nam-jun, head of the Seoul City Urban Space Headquarters, stated, "With the expansion of rapid integrated planning to urban maintenance-type redevelopment, it will breathe new life into city center development, which has faced limitations due to various regulations. Through this, we hope to expedite the maintenance of aging city centers and lay the foundation for Seoul's growth and innovation."