Gangnam Reconstruction Association Presidents' Ordeal... Dismissal Rush at Gaepo Jugong 4 and Sindonga

Smarter Union Members Demand Higher Expertise and Transparency
Actively Pursuing Dismissals Without Hesitation, Even at Drive-Thru General Meetings

[Asia Economy Reporter Onyu Lim] The heads of reconstruction associations in Seoul's Gangnam area, who once wielded 'absolute power' in maintenance projects, are facing a series of hardships. This year, the heads of associations in Gaepo-dong Jugong 4 Complex in Gangnam-gu, Sindonga in Seocho-dong Seocho-gu, and Miseong and Croba in Sincheon-dong Songpa-gu have been successively dismissed. This appears to be due to growing distrust toward the association heads as various regulations have caused setbacks in project progress.

According to industry sources on the 20th, the Gaepo Jugong 4 Complex association recently held a general meeting and elected a new head. This came three months after the previous head was dismissed at an extraordinary general meeting in February. The former head was dismissed for reasons including causing additional charges of tens of millions of won per household and delaying the project due to a lawsuit with the owner of a nearby kindergarten. Despite having completed general sales, 2,131 out of 2,909 association members voted in favor of the dismissal. It is reported that the members supported the new head for promising equal negotiations with the construction company GS Construction.

This is not the first time this year that a reconstruction association head has been dismissed in Seoul. Especially, heads of prominent complexes in the Gangnam area have been successively removed. On the 10th, the reconstruction association members of Sindonga Apartment in Seocho-dong held an extraordinary general meeting in a drive-thru format and passed a motion to dismiss the head. The reason was that although conditional management disposition approval was received in 2017, the project caused financial losses to members due to delays in educational impact assessments caused by sunlight rights issues, leading to the rejection of architectural review. Earlier in March, the head of the reconstruction association of Miseong and Croba Apartments in Sincheon-dong was dismissed for abandoning specialized design based solely on the decision of the delegates' council without the consent of the members.

The series of dismissals of association heads is interpreted as reflecting concerns over the worsening profitability of reconstruction projects due to strengthened regulations such as the private land pre-sale price ceiling system and the excess profit recovery system. There is a growing recognition that maximizing project feasibility requires moving away from the past rough-and-ready association management toward professionalism, transparency, and execution power.

Increased understanding of reconstruction projects among investors is also cited as a background factor. A representative from A Real Estate in Gaepo-dong said, "In the past, reconstruction was considered a specialized area and was left to the association heads, but nowadays, there are many investors well-versed in the procedures."

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