Fallout from New Headquarters Withdrawal... Seoul City Rebuts JYP Entertainment: "Don't Mislead Public Opinion"

After JYP Entertainment completely scrapped its plans to build a new headquarters in Godeok-dong, Gangdong-gu, Seoul, and criticism over the city’s responsibility emerged, the Seoul Metropolitan Government issued a rebuttal on October 9.

Artist's rendering of the new JYP Entertainment headquarters planned for Godeok-dong, Gangdong-gu, Seoul.

In a statement released that day, the Seoul Metropolitan Government said, “There is a misunderstanding that the process of pursuing and abandoning the JYP headquarters project was solely the fault of SH, a Seoul city investment agency, but that is not true.” The city said JYP Entertainment announced its unilateral “withdrawal” while it and SH Corporation were negotiating an adjustment proposal on whether to “open up the front section” of the site.

The city said, “The possibility of changes to the surrounding land-use plan was specified in the sale conditions, and the change to the park designation was a lawful procedure to secure funds for school facilities.” It added, “JYP continued with the design and permitting process even after the park designation change was made public, and raised no formal objections during that process.” The city explained that JYP Entertainment applied for architectural review on November 11, 2025, after the change to the park designation was announced on October 24, 2025, and that JYP raised no objections before final building approval was granted on April 15 this year.

After JYP raised concerns about the change to the park designation following the permitting process, the Seoul Metropolitan Government reportedly notified the company that it was willing to make the land-use plan more flexible, including by designating areas for buildings of five stories or fewer. The city said JYP announced its withdrawal the previous day while discussions between the two sides, including on these matters, were underway.

The Seoul Metropolitan Government said, “Just as a company’s brand matters to JYP, the reputation and credibility of the city government of Seoul matter to us.” It added, “We ask JYP not to mislead public opinion and to make its position clear.”

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