Choo Mi-ae Proposes 13 Key Tasks for Rapid Implementation of the Third New Towns to the Government: "Transportation Before Move-In Currently Impossible"

Gyeonggi Province Governor Choo Mi-ae has submitted 13 institutional improvement tasks, prepared by Gyeonggi Province, to the National Assembly and the central government, stressing the urgent need for institutional reform to ensure the timely move-in to the third new towns. These tasks cover areas such as metropolitan transportation, compensation, and attracting businesses.

She said, "Along with transportation measures, what we focused on was whether residents could move into the third new towns on schedule. Upon reviewing the situation, we found an urgent need for institutional reform in many areas, so we carefully selected and refined 13 key institutional improvement tasks."

She also pointed out, "Although there is always talk of 'transportation first, move-in later,' in practice, initiating metropolitan transportation facilities requires a preliminary feasibility study. Because of this, one to two years, or even three to four years, can pass quickly, making 'transportation first, move-in later' virtually impossible under the current institution."

In this regard, she strongly advocated for the introduction of a system to exempt transportation measures related to new town development, such as railroads and roads, from preliminary feasibility studies. She said, "It makes no sense for the country to announce an urban development plan and then later say, 'As for the transportation measures, please conduct a separate preliminary feasibility study.' Since transportation measures should have been considered along with the new town plan, it is necessary to legally introduce a measure that exempts new town projects from preliminary feasibility studies."

She particularly emphasized, "Gyeonggi Province should secure a sufficient amount of industrial land in order to attract businesses, and by utilizing the province's right to recommend companies, we should create more jobs, thereby reducing the commuter traffic demand toward Seoul. As these are public housing projects being carried out in Gyeonggi Province, Gyeonggi Housing and Urban Corporation should be able to participate to an extent that matches its capabilities. I ask the National Assembly to agree to the institutional improvement proposals discussed today and establish a system that will enable Gyeonggi Province to provide housing in a timely manner."

The 13 institutional improvement tasks mentioned by Governor Choo were the same ones discussed during a related policy meeting held on September 4. Key tasks include: ▲ Utilizing electronic data for documents related to land and buildings to expedite the compensation process in public housing districts; ▲ Expanding the participation and authority of local governments in public housing projects; ▲ Exempting preliminary feasibility studies for metropolitan transportation projects already confirmed as part of public housing district transportation improvement measures; ▲ Drawing up plans for relocating businesses and relocation complexes from the designation stage of public housing districts, and designating public housing districts and corporate relocation complexes simultaneously.

At the forum, Professor Koo Ja-hoon of the Hanyang University Graduate School of Urban Studies presided as the moderator, and Lee Ji-hyun, policy advisor to Gyeonggi Province, made a presentation on "Institutional Improvement Tasks on the Ground for Rapid Supply of the Third New Town."

The comprehensive discussion session featured Lee Eun-sun, Director General of Urban Development at Gyeonggi Province; Park Jin-ho, Director of the Public Land Management Division at the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport; Choi Joon-yeop, Head of New Town Project Division 1 at Korea Land & Housing Corporation (LH); Park In-kwon, Head of Urban Planning Strategy at Gyeonggi Housing and Urban Corporation (GH); and Nam Ji-hyun, Research Fellow at Gyeonggi Research Institute.

Gyeonggi Province Governor Choo Mi-ae is speaking at the "National Assembly Policy Forum for Strengthening Self-Sufficiency and Accelerated Promotion of the 3rd New Towns Following the Government's August 13 Measures," held on the 28th at Seminar Room 1 of the National Assembly Members' Office Building. Provided by Gyeonggi Province

The participants discussed ways to improve the system so that the government's policy of rapidly supplying housing can be effectively implemented in the field. They also explored measures to secure jobs and living infrastructure alongside housing supply in order to enhance the self-sufficiency of the third new towns.

Gyeonggi Province plans to compile the opinions presented at this forum and the issues identified in the field at third new town projects, and to continuously consult with the National Assembly, central government, and relevant agencies such as Korea Land & Housing Corporation and Gyeonggi Housing and Urban Corporation, regarding institutional improvement measures.

The government has announced through the August 13 measures that the procedures for developing public housing sites, which were previously carried out sequentially, will be expedited or carried out simultaneously, so that 89,000 units in existing public housing sites can be started quickly by 2030. The goal is to shorten the period from candidate site announcement to groundbreaking from the previous approximately 68 months to 37 months.

Gyeonggi Province believes that, along with accelerating housing supply, it is also necessary to enhance the self-sufficiency of the third new towns. For this reason, the focus of this forum was on sharing the institutional obstacles identified in the field with the National Assembly, central government, and project implementers, and connecting them to actual institutional improvements.

Meanwhile, earlier in the day, Governor Choo visited the Goyang Changneung public housing district to inspect the status of housing construction ahead of the first scheduled move-in in December 2027, as well as to review key issues affecting project progress, including military base relocation and soil purification.

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