Seoul Universities to Ease Height and Floor Area Ratio Regulations... Innovation Growth Zones Also Established

Seoul City Increases University Floor Area Ratio Up to 1.2 Times
Plans to Create Zones Allowing Buildings Without Floor Area Ratio Limits
Height Restrictions to Be Lifted for 'Universities in Scenic Districts' If No Impact on Surrounding Views

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyemin] Floor area ratio (FAR) and height regulations for 54 universities in Seoul will be relaxed. An Innovation Growth Zone, where buildings can be constructed with virtually no FAR restrictions, will also be newly established. Seoul City is taking urban planning support measures to grow universities beyond being cradles of knowledge into hubs for startups and technological innovation.

Seoul City announced on the 12th the 'Urban Planning Support Plan' for universities in Seoul, which includes these measures, and has begun revising ordinances for institutional improvements, with full implementation scheduled for the second half of next year.

This support plan aligns with previous measures that increased the FAR for hospitals expanding public medical infrastructure up to 1.2 times. The city stated its intention to provide bold regulatory relaxations and full support to enhance competitiveness for facilities with strong public nature operated by the private sector, such as hospitals and universities.

The main contents of the support plan to assist the innovative growth of 54 universities in Seoul include ▲FAR incentives ▲flexible height planning ▲and expanded autonomy in space utilization for universities.

First, Seoul City will revise the urban planning ordinance to relax university FARs by up to 1.2 times compared to the current standards. This takes into account that 98% of universities in Seoul are located in low-density zoning areas with FARs of 200% or less (natural green areas, first and second-class general residential zones), leaving no room for new construction or expansion.

The concept of an Innovation Growth Zone with virtually no FAR restrictions has also been newly introduced. This zone will be designated in areas where future talent development, industry-academia cooperation, and startup support facilities can be concentrated, and can be designated as zones or facilities within universities. The city will allow FARs of 1000% or more, equivalent to commercial areas, in these zones. Surplus FAR from areas within universities that do not require FAR, such as sports fields or green spaces, can be transferred here, enabling buildings to be constructed with virtually no FAR limits.

Additionally, if the impact on the surrounding landscape is minimal, regulations will be relaxed so that height restrictions of up to 7 floors (28 meters) in natural landscape districts will not apply. Natural landscape districts are zoning areas designated around mountains and hills to protect the surrounding scenery. Currently, 20 of the 54 universities are subject to this regulation.

The city will also allow the FAR of 'Biotope Grade 1' areas, which were restricted from development due to their special ecological value, to be transferred to other zones for utilization. Furthermore, simple facility changes, including small-scale expansions, will be streamlined to proceed based on departmental review opinions without requiring consultation from the Urban Planning Committee.

According to this plan, relaxing the FAR by 1.2 times for university sites that use more than 70% of their FAR will secure an additional maximum floor area of 530,000 square meters. The city analyzed that if the increased area is expanded into startup spaces, industry-academia cooperation spaces, and university research and development (R&D) facilities in a 5:4:1 ratio, it is expected to generate annual sales of 914 billion KRW, attract investments of 1.18 trillion KRW, and create 23,800 jobs.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.