[Exclusive] Redevelopment Project Challenges to Be Addressed Directly to the Government... Joint Consultative Body Launched by Government and Seoul District Offices

Prime Minister Han Seongsook Inspects Jangwi-dong Redevelopment Site
Examines Project-by-Project Funding and Delays in Approvals
Pushing for Rapid Progress Toward Annual Goal of 30,000 Housing Starts
Disagreements Between Seoul City and District Heads Over Expansion of District Authority

To address delays in approvals for urban redevelopment projects in central Seoul and confusion over inter-agency policy, the government and district offices in Seoul will establish an integrated consultative body. This will consolidate the currently fragmented communication channels—separate for each of the 25 districts—into a unified contact point, allowing direct communication of field challenges to the government. As a result, the approval process is also expected to accelerate.

Prime Minister Han Seongsuk (second from the right) is conducting an on-site inspection of the 3rd New Town housing supply site in Goyang Changneung District, Deokyang-gu, Goyang City, Gyeonggi Province, on the 9th of last month, together with Kim Yunduk, Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport (far right). Photo by Yonhap News.

According to relevant government ministries on August 27, Prime Minister Han Seongsook will visit the site of the Jangwi-dong redevelopment project in Seongbuk-gu, Seoul this week. This marks her first visit to a redevelopment site in Seoul since the announcement of the August 13 housing supply measures. Last month on the 9th, she inspected Goyang Changneung in Gyeonggi Province, and on the 19th of this month, she visited Incheon Gyeyang—both third-phase new towns. The focus of her site inspections has thus shifted from new towns to urban redevelopment projects in Seoul.

The decision to form the consultative body came after Prime Minister Han discussed plans for expanding housing supply with the heads of 21 Seoul districts, in response to on-site demands for faster housing supply. The combined housing supply projects that are being planned or are underway in the 21 districts—including private redevelopment, public redevelopment, and urban complex projects—amount to a total of 97 projects for 138,000 housing units.

At redevelopment sites, key obstacles have been identified as delays in review and approval, excessive regulation, and complex approval procedures. One reconstruction association leader in the Seoul area commented, "Even when the government announces regulatory easing measures, the practical guidelines are not delivered to the front-line staff, so the impact on the ground is minimal. Even the integrated review process, introduced to shorten approval times, has been delayed by more than a year for small complexes of 300 units."

Additional factors that delay projects include lending restrictions on relocation expenses and unreasonable demands from local governments regarding infrastructure improvements. The process for redevelopment project approvals involves complex entanglement between basic local governments, the Seoul Metropolitan Government, and the central government. If each authority acts independently, there is a risk of policy misalignment. Because the Seoul Metropolitan Government holds approval authority over infrastructure such as parks and roads, even if authority is delegated to local governments, it is difficult to accelerate the process unilaterally. If projects proceed individually without communication, conflicting directions between government agencies may increase confusion.

The consultative body will be operated as an integrated organization rather than having separate entities for each of the 25 districts. This will transition from a district-by-district approach to a dedicated channel allowing local governments to deliver a unified message to the central government. The consultative body will include the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH), and Korea Real Estate Board, jointly addressing issues such as financial support, approval procedures, and relocation measures.

The goal of close management by district is to link the proposed construction volumes for central Seoul, as indicated in the August 13 measures, with real project progress. The government aims to maintain annual redevelopment and reconstruction starts in Seoul at above 22,000 units—the 10-year average—and add 8,000 units from urban complexes and small-scale redevelopment, targeting a total of about 30,000 housing starts per year. The government considers it necessary to manage this target by district and project site. They assess that if each of the 25 Seoul districts can successfully proceed with a project of around 1,000 units, a substantial supply can be secured.

However, disagreements remain regarding the authority for redevelopment projects. In a recent meeting with the Prime Minister, district heads requested institutional improvements and stronger authority for district heads to accelerate redevelopment. The government and ruling party are considering transferring approval authority for redevelopment and reconstruction projects with 500 units or fewer to district heads, but the Seoul Metropolitan Government has expressed opposition to this plan. For district-specific consultative bodies to actually increase project speed, it is first necessary to resolve the division of authority between the central government and the Seoul city government.

A government official said, "For each redevelopment and reconstruction site, we want to see how we can provide customized financial assistance, streamline approval procedures, and develop relocation plans together. In particular, since relocation can immediately impact the rental market, we plan to thoroughly check whether adequate plans and required funding are being properly secured and executed."

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