Gyeonggi Province Eases Village Redevelopment in Deregulated Greenbelt Areas, Paving the Way for 20,000 New Homes

Gyeonggi Province expects that the government's relaxation of greenbelt (development restriction zone) regulations will breathe new life into village maintenance projects and make it possible to supply 20,000 new housing units in more than 30 locations throughout the province, including Bucheon Daejang.

Previously, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport revised the "Guidelines for Establishing Amendments to Urban·County Management Plans for the Adjustment of Development Restriction Zones," which came into effect on June 9, 2026.

Under the revised guidelines, requirements have been significantly eased so that when a public housing district project begins (commencement of construction), the land use zoning for adjacent deregulated village areas, where local governments or others are carrying out maintenance projects for public housing supply, can be upgraded immediately.

Previously, in the case of village areas—older natural settlements within greenbelts—even after deregulation, only low-rise buildings could be constructed, causing considerable inconvenience to residents. In order for these areas to receive an upgrade in land use zoning that would allow for the construction of apartments or proper buildings, the construction of the adjoining new town (public housing district) had to be fully completed (completion of construction).

With this guideline revision, maintenance projects are expected to accelerate in 30 deregulated village areas (about 2.85 million square meters) adjacent to 17 public housing districts in 12 cities and counties currently underway in the province. Gyeonggi Province estimates that, if the projects proceed smoothly with residents' consent, these areas could provide 20,161 new housing units.

In fact, following the designation of the district in May 2020 and the commencement of construction in August 2023, the deregulated village in Daejang, adjacent to the Bucheon Daejang public housing district, is now eligible to proceed with maintenance projects under the revised guidelines.

Location Map of Bucheon Daejang District

Separately, the government will also implement customized regulatory easing measures for villages where large-scale maintenance is difficult.

New small-scale housing maintenance methods have been introduced—such as "autonomous housing maintenance projects" and "street housing maintenance projects"—allowing for the improvement of single-family and multi-family homes outside of existing urban development or reconstruction·redevelopment projects, thus broadening the range of options.

Previously, it was prohibited to subdivide a single village into multiple zones and develop them in stages, leading to many cases where projects could not proceed at all. However, going forward, if a village is clearly separated by roads, railways, rivers, or similar features of 15 meters or more, the law will allow zones to be divided and maintenance projects to be carried out in stages.

As a result, in the case of the Samsong village in Goyang—where progress was hindered by road separation and difficulties in resident participation between zones—maintenance projects are now expected to gain momentum, as phased redevelopment of two to three zones becomes possible.

An official from Gyeonggi Province stated, "As the requirements for upgrading land use zoning are advanced to the commencement of construction for public housing districts and as both project methods and implementation processes are relaxed, we expect a significant revitalization of maintenance in deregulated village areas in the province. We will continue to actively propose institutional improvements to ensure that no residents suffer from unreasonable regulations even after greenbelt deregulation."

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