Connection to Ground-Level Green Spaces, Supply of Office, Lodging Infrastructure, and Residential Units
Park Conversion of PJ Hotel and Sampung Shopping Center
"Securing Momentum for the Creation of the North-South Green Axis"
The redevelopment project to create an urban garden in the area surrounding Sewoon Shopping Center in Seoul is now gaining full momentum. Through mixed-use development, infrastructure and residential spaces connected to ground-level green areas are planned to be supplied. A large-scale urban park of over 9,000 square meters will be established on the sites of Sampung Shopping Center and PJ Hotel.
On the 28th, the Seoul Metropolitan Government announced that, at the 5th Urban Redevelopment Committee meeting held the previous day, it had approved with modifications the amendment to the redevelopment promotion plan for District 6-1-3 of the Sewoon Redevelopment Promotion District, which includes the PJ Hotel site.
Sewoon Shopping Center, which opened in 1967 as Korea's first mixed-use apartment complex, is composed of seven shopping centers, including Cheonggye Shopping Center, Daerim Shopping Center, and Sampung Shopping Center. In 2006, the city designated Sewoon Shopping Center and its surrounding area as a redevelopment promotion district and pushed for development. However, due to a downturn in the real estate market, city policy shifted to focus on regeneration and preservation, resulting in the loss of opportunities and momentum for change. The project regained speed when Mayor Oh Sehoon took office again in 2021. The city is currently pursuing the creation of an urban park by transforming Sampung Shopping Center and PJ Hotel into parks, as a core project to realize the north-south green axis connecting Jongmyo to Toegye-ro.
The amendment to the redevelopment promotion plan includes the provision of large-scale office, lodging infrastructure, and residential spaces connected to ground-level green areas through high-density, mixed-use development. The land use zone will be upgraded from general commercial to central commercial, with the floor area ratio relaxed to up to 1,550% and the standard building height eased from 90 meters to up to 205 meters. In addition, the first-floor lobby will be opened to provide a rest area and will be connected to the urban park and open green spaces. In the case of Sewoon District 6-1-3, the area will be developed into a mixed-use space of 47 to 54 stories above ground, equipped with office, lodging, commercial, and residential functions, creating a "work-live-leisure" complex.
In addition, the amendment includes a plan to integrate the development of the PJ Hotel, which has been designated as an urban planning facility (park), among the seven shopping center clusters stretching from Sewoon Shopping Center to Jinyang Shopping Center.
Previously, in April 2022, the city announced a strategy to recreate a green ecological city center, aiming to secure sufficient green space through high-density mixed-use development, with the goal of harmonizing high-rise buildings and forests within the city center.
In June last year, the city decided on an amendment to the Sewoon Redevelopment Promotion Plan to gradually secure approximately 136,000 square meters of green space within the Sewoon District. The city is currently working to secure substantial green space in the city center by transforming shopping center clusters into parks and creating open green spaces.
According to the plan, when the redevelopment promotion project for Sewoon District 6-1-3 is completed in 2031, it is expected that approximately 9,340 square meters of urban park will be created through the park conversion of PJ Hotel and Sampung Shopping Center. Additionally, about 4,060 square meters of open green space will be created on private land, resulting in a total of approximately 13,400 square meters of green space secured.
Cho Namjun, head of the Seoul Urban Space Headquarters, stated, "The creation of a historical landscape axis connecting Jongmyo and Namsan has long been a cherished project for Seoul. The creation of the north-south green axis, which had stalled after the demolition of the modern shopping center in front of Jongmyo, has now regained momentum with this decision. Going forward, we will expedite the approval process and spare no effort to ensure the prompt completion of a fully realized urban park."
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