Yongsan-gu, 2020 Aerial Photo Interpretation Field Survey

6 Housing Maintenance Team Leaders and Others Conduct On-Site Investigation of 2,602 Suspected Unauthorized Building Extensions

[Asia Economy Reporter Jongil Park] Yongsan-gu (District Mayor Seong Jang-hyun) will conduct on-site investigations by June for 2,602 buildings where changes were detected based on the 2019 aerial photo analysis.

This is to prevent safety accidents caused by unauthorized construction and to improve the urban landscape.

The crackdown targets buildings and temporary structures constructed (new construction, extension, reconstruction, extension/reconstruction, major repair, change of use) without obtaining building permits, notifications, approvals, or consultations as required by the Building Act and other relevant laws.

In particular, the investigation will focus on ▲ unauthorized extensions of rooftops, balconies, storage rooms, or other auxiliary buildings ▲ unauthorized construction of temporary structures such as containers ▲ unauthorized installation of temporary structures in front of stores used for business operations.

The investigation team consists of six public officials, including the head of the Housing Maintenance Team. Each official is responsible for 2 to 3 administrative neighborhoods.

A district official stated, “There have been cases where individuals impersonate public officials and demand money by promising to legalize unauthorized constructions. Please be cautious and request to see official identification from investigators to avoid being victimized.”

If unauthorized buildings are confirmed through the investigation, the district will request the building owners to voluntarily correct the violations. If corrections are not made within the deadline, a prior notice will be given before imposing enforcement fines.

Where possible, building owners will be guided through the approval (post-approval or notification) procedures to minimize disadvantages.

Last year, the district investigated 2,357 buildings and detected 112 violations.

Seong Jang-hyun, Mayor of Yongsan-gu, said, “Although these are difficult times, we have no choice but to continue cracking down on illegal buildings to prevent safety accidents. We ask for your active cooperation with the public officials conducting on-site investigations.”

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