Yoon-duk Kim and Se-hoon Oh Leave Yongsan Park Housing Talks Unresolved... Discussions to Resume Next Week (Comprehensive)

"Significant Differences Noted" in Hour-long Closed-Door Meeting
Kim: "Supplying Housing for Young People and Newlyweds on Damaged Land"
Oh: "Absolutely Unacceptable... Proposes Surrounding Land Instead of Yongsan Park"

The government and the Seoul Metropolitan Government discussed plans for housing supply within Yongsan Park on August 20, but failed to narrow their differences. No conclusions were reached regarding the housing volume for the Yongsan International Business District, the use of greenbelt areas, or the easing of regulations on reconstruction and redevelopment. Both sides agreed to meet again next week to continue discussions.

Kim Yoonduk, Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport (right), and Oh Se-hoon, Mayor of Seoul, are leaving after concluding discussions on Seoul's housing issues, including housing supply utilizing Yongsan Park, at a restaurant in Seoul on the 20th. Photo by Yonhap News Agency

Kim Yoonduk, Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, and Oh Se-hoon, Mayor of Seoul, held a closed-door meeting for about one hour near Seoul City Hall that day. This was their first official meeting since the government announced housing supply measures on August 13. The measures included reviewing the area surrounding Yongsan Park, including Yongsan Children's Garden, as a candidate site for new housing, a move opposed by both the Seoul Metropolitan Government and Yongsan District Office.

Minister Kim told reporters after the meeting, "I confirmed the difference in positions with Mayor Oh regarding housing supply within Yongsan Park," adding, "Mayor Oh takes a fundamentally opposing stance, while I am in favor." He continued, "I think many misunderstandings regarding my position have been resolved, but there remain significant differences on key issues."

Mayor Oh, in a separate briefing, stated, "I made it clear that I cannot agree to converting even a limited portion of Yongsan Park for residential use," adding, "Agreeing to this would make me a criminal before history as the Mayor of Seoul."

Kim Yoonduk: "Not Developing the Entire Park... Housing Supply Limited to Disturbed Areas"

Minister Kim repeatedly stressed that he does not intend to turn the entire Yongsan Park into an apartment complex. "I've even received messages asking, 'Are you trying to demolish all of Yongsan Park and become a criminal before history?' but I am not proposing to demolish the entire park and build houses," he said.

He added, "The plan is to remediate already disturbed areas and supply housing, on a limited basis, to young people and newlyweds. Protecting Yongsan Park and providing housing for young people and newlyweds are not mutually exclusive. What I am proposing is that we make efforts to achieve both."

Minister Kim also stated that the specific supply sites and volumes have yet to be decided. "I hope people do not think the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport has already decided on a particular plot," he said. "The target sites will naturally be discussed through the public deliberation process."

He left open the possibility of supplying housing for sites that already have residential facilities. "Take the former military officer residences, for instance—they already have buildings where people lived. In such cases, I believe supplying housing is possible," he said.

Oh Se-hoon: "We Must Preserve the Green Axis"... Proposes Alternative Surrounding Sites Such as Camp Kim

During his briefing, Mayor Oh stated that existing buildings, such as the former Defense Acquisition Program Administration and military apartments, are considered part of Yongsan Park’s main area. "The mentioned plots are also main areas of the park. Even now, the green space is not large and much of it is covered in concrete," he said. "The purpose of the Yongsan Park Special Act is to transform Yongsan Park into a national garden like Seoul Forest. The idea that we do not need to green the land just because there are already buildings is an argument I cannot agree with."

Mayor Oh emphasized, "Yongsan Park serves as a leisure park for citizens and is a major part of the green axis stretching from Namsan to the Han River," making it clear that the plan to build housing within the park is unacceptable.

Instead, he presented a compromise proposal to utilize sites surrounding Yongsan Park. "I suggested being flexible in discussing ways to utilize the land adjacent to Yongsan Park," he said. He mentioned sites such as Camp Kim, the Kyunglidan area, and parking lots of the Bank of Korea and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs as potential candidates. "Regarding the utilization of nearby sites, I counter-proposed that I am willing to proactively review and support issues related to urban infrastructure—including transportation policy and water and sewage facilities," he added.

Mayor Oh also pointed out the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport’s position of not designating a specific supply site. "Today, I asked Minister Kim several times which part of Yongsan Park would be converted for residential use, but he never specified, and there is no finalized position from the Ministry. That is their official stance," he said. He continued, "Even though there is no real power to block amending the Yongsan Park Special Act in the National Assembly, the support of Seoul citizens will serve as a limit to the government's and ruling party’s actions."

Pursuing 'Public Deliberation' on Yongsan Park Housing... Whether to Begin Will Be Decided Next Week

Kim Yoonduk, Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport (left), and Oh Se-hoon, Mayor of Seoul, shake hands as they begin a meeting related to housing supply on the 20th at Conference House Dalgapbi in Jung-gu, Seoul. Joint coverage

Minister Kim emphasized that the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport will go through public deliberation and consultation before proceeding with housing supply in Yongsan Park. He cited holding public forums and forming a public deliberation committee as possible options. Asked whether public deliberation would be initiated even if the Seoul Metropolitan Government remains opposed, he said, "That is something we will have to discuss when we meet again next week."

When asked whether public deliberation would not be initiated if Mayor Oh's stance does not change, he replied, "We have to discuss the matter further before coming to a conclusion. Since we have clearly identified our differences today, we will meet again next week for further discussion."

The costs and the party responsible for soil remediation have not yet been reviewed. "If we had already reviewed every detail, including that issue, people would say the Ministry has already decided to build houses. We are not at the stage of reviewing such details yet," Minister Kim said.

The discussions also covered the scale of housing supply for the Yongsan International Business District in addition to Yongsan Park. The government’s policy is to supply 10,000 units there, but the Seoul Metropolitan Government believes a maximum of 8,000 is feasible. "The Yongsan International Business District was also discussed. There has been no change or conclusion yet. We agreed to meet and finalize discussions next week," Minister Kim said.

Mayor Oh added, "I understand that the minister met directly with Kwon Young-se, National Assembly member for Yongsan, as well as the head of Yongsan District Office. Both sides have maintained firm positions, and we agreed to continue discussions on this matter in the future."

The issue of utilizing greenbelt areas in Seoul was also on the table. Minister Kim explained, "This is not about lifting the greenbelt designation indiscriminately. We agreed to consider limited utilization of already disturbed areas—such as those with vinyl greenhouses." When asked whether Mayor Oh expressed willingness to accept partial greenbelt release, he replied, "No, that was never discussed." Minister Kim further stated, "We could not wrap up today's dialogue in just one day, so both the Mayor and I agreed to think it over. The idea is that each side will take a step back to continue the conversation."

No conclusions were reached on the issues related to reconstruction and redevelopment. Mayor Oh revealed that during the meeting, he asked Minister Kim to temporarily lift restrictions on transferring the rights of union members and to relax the floor area ratio and rental housing requirements. Minister Kim responded to a question about whether the Ministry would reconsider Seoul’s requests, saying, "Mayor Oh said he would consider it, and so will I."

Both parties stressed that the meeting was not a breakdown. Mayor Oh stated, "Today's meeting with Minister Kim did not end in rupture; we closed by agreeing to continue talks next week. We will discuss at what point a compromise can be reached. The channels of communication will remain open." Minister Kim also commented, "We agreed to meet again next week to continue the dialogue, and I see it as my responsibility to meet with Mayor Oh."

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