'Seoul's Last Dal-dongnae' Baeksamaeul Redevelopment, on Track After 12 Years

Approval Notice of Project Implementation Plan
Conflict Resolved After 33 Administrative Ordinance Communications... Scheduled to Transform into 2,437 Households
Nation's First Residential Preservation Project... Win-Win Regeneration Model Without 'Dungjinaemollim' Displacement

Current view of Baeksa Village. (Provided by Seoul City)

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyemin] The redevelopment project of 'Baeksa Village,' known as Seoul's last hillside neighborhood, has finally gotten back on track after 12 years.

Seoul City announced on the 4th that the redevelopment project implementation plan for the Baeksa Village site at 30-3 Junggye-bon-dong, Nowon-gu, has been officially approved. Accordingly, by 2025, the area will be transformed into a cooperative residential complex with a total of 2,437 households, including 1,953 apartment units and 484 rental housing units.

Spanning 186,965㎡, Baeksa Village was formed in 1967 when demolition residents from Cheonggyecheon and Yeongdeungpo were forcibly relocated to facilitate urban development. However, due to poor living conditions, it was practically close to a refugee settlement. The area had long been designated as a development-restricted zone, and even after its release in 2008, redevelopment projects were stalled for a long time due to low profitability and resident conflicts.

To prevent further stagnation, Seoul City mobilized all administrative resources to mediate. Conflict resolution experts were dispatched to the site, and a total of 33 general meetings were held involving Seoul City, the district office, project implementers, and residents. Through communication, conflicts over building heights and other issues were resolved, and in May 2019, the project passed the Seoul City Urban Planning Committee review, laying the groundwork for project advancement.

Through this process, the number of apartment units increased by about 232 compared to the original 2012 plan. The average building height was agreed to be below 12 floors, with a maximum of 20 floors.

Notably, this project is the first nationwide attempt at 'cooperative residential area regeneration,' which preserves traces of the past that organically formed from the 1960s to 1970s while redeveloping the deteriorated low-rise residential area. In March 2018, Seoul City amended the 'Urban and Residential Environment Maintenance Ordinance' to introduce a new type called 'Residential Area Preservation Project,' the first of its kind in the country.

Seoul City plans to preserve the characteristics of Baeksa Village, known as Seoul's last hillside neighborhood, by recording the lives and living history of working-class people from the 1960s and 1970s and preserving parts of the terrain, alleys, and stairways in their original form. This reflects voices from various sectors emphasizing the need to preserve the vanishing residential living history.

Accordingly, the planned site for public rental housing in Baeksa Village will include various community facilities such as an exhibition hall, village restaurant, and village workshop alongside the housing. This is to ensure that the community, which has continued for decades, remains intact after the redevelopment. The remaining area will see the demolition of existing houses and the construction of apartment complexes up to 20 floors high.

Seoul City designated Baeksa Village as a 'Special Architectural Zone' to encourage creative architectural designs. The site was divided into 28 zones, and 15 architects were assigned to develop architectural plans with distinct designs. In particular, regulations related to sunlight rights and landscaping were significantly relaxed in the residential area preservation project zone, and conditions were imposed to prohibit the opening of community facilities and the installation of blocking structures at the boundaries between complexes to prevent separation.

Redevelopment Master Plan of Baeksa Village (Provided by Seoul City)

The Baeksa Village exhibition hall will display over 30 items collected by Seoul City over the past two years, including articles, videos, and papers, as well as about 80 daily life items such as briquette stoves. Photos of Baeksa Village taken by citizens will also be included. The current terrain, interior and exterior of buildings, and alleys of Baeksa Village will be recorded through 3D scanning and exhibited. This is a measure to remember the history of Baeksa Village and the lives of its residents.

Additionally, a 'social mix + age mix' approach will be introduced to attract a diverse range of people such as youth, artists, and small business owners by utilizing happy housing, community facilities, and shared housing.

The Baeksa Village redevelopment project aims for completion in the first half of 2025. Construction companies will be selected in the second half of this year, and after approval of the management disposition plan next year, construction will begin. Currently, resident relocation is underway. Starting with residents living in dangerous buildings, 394 households, accounting for 66% of the total 597 households, have completed relocation.

Seoul City is also preparing measures to prevent gentrification, which causes involuntary displacement of original residents. Considering Baeksa Village's high proportion of elderly and low-income residents, various support plans will be developed to supply affordable rental housing.

Ryu Hoon, Director of Seoul City's Urban Regeneration Office, said, "Baeksa Village is a new model of cooperative residential area regeneration that minimizes the displacement of existing residents due to redevelopment while enabling large-scale housing supply in the city center. We plan to continuously discover and apply various types of regeneration models to improve deteriorated residential environments."

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