Seoul to Build 'Youth Cultural Complex' on Former Seongdong Detention Center Site

Public-Private Partnership Initiative competition... Preferred bidder selected

Space for content creation and digital skills development

Developing open cultural spaces for local residents

A cultural complex for young people will be built on the site of the former Seongdong Detention Center in Garak-dong, Songpa-gu, Seoul. The Seoul Metropolitan Government secured the site through public contributions and plans to use it as a space for young people in the area and the local community.

On Monday, the Seoul Metropolitan Government announced that it had selected a consortium comprising Wibest Asset Management and three other companies as the preferred bidder in its evaluation of proposals for a public-private partnership project on Site 4 (4,250 sq m) of the Seongdong Detention Center Special Planning Zone.

Architectural rendering of the youth cultural complex that the Seoul Metropolitan Government will build on the site of Seongdong Detention Center in Garak-dong, Songpa-gu. Seoul Metropolitan Government

The Seongdong Detention Center moved to the Munjeong Legal Complex in 2017, and the site is being developed in stages as a mixed-use residential, business and cultural district. Taking into account the large number of young people living nearby, the city secured land for a youth education and cultural complex through public contributions.

In July, the Seoul Metropolitan Government launched the nation's first target-site competition-based public-private partnership project, known as the Public-Private Partnership Initiative, to develop Site 4 of the Special Planning Zone. Under this approach, the public sector transparently discloses information about a site in advance, and private companies submit creative project plans. The city says the initiative can speed up development of publicly owned sites available for use and ensure public benefits from the early stages. It is working to institutionalize the initiative and currently has projects underway at five sites.

The consortium including Wibest Asset Management, selected as the preferred bidder on Monday, proposed a "cultural complex for the next generation of young people" that combines youth culture, education and leisure with content creation and hands-on experiences, while also strengthening digital skills, an area of growing interest. The proposal aims to help young people choose career paths and sets out a vision for fostering local community ties by integrating publicly accessible cultural spaces into the area.

The Seoul Metropolitan Government plans to advise the preferred bidder on the city's policy direction and help refine its proposal. It also plans to expedite relevant administrative procedures, including a feasibility review, to speed up development of the site. In consultation with the city, the preferred bidder will prepare a detailed project plan and submit it as a proposal to qualify as the "original proposer" under the Act on Public-Private Partnerships in Infrastructure.

Ahn Daehee, Director General for Future Space Planning at the Seoul Metropolitan Government, said, "The target-site competition-based public-private partnership project is a new model for public-private cooperation that leverages the potential of city-owned land to deliver everyday facilities that residents can experience more quickly. Through this competition, we will combine the private sector's creative planning with the Seongdong Detention Center site to provide young people with a place to grow and take part in activities, and local residents with a cultural hub in their daily lives."

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