"Is This the Oh Se-hoon Effect? Jamsil Reconstruction Gains Momentum Again"

Miseong-Croba Passes Building Review After 1 Year 8 Months
Some Specialized Designs Including Skybridge Accepted
Jugong 5-Danji Education Impact Assessment Passed
Expectations for Normalization of Reconstruction Timeline

[Asia Economy Reporter Onyu Lim] The reconstruction projects in the Jamsil-dong area of Songpa-gu, Seoul, which had been stalled for some time, are gaining momentum. The Miseong·Clover Apartments (legal dong: Sincheon-dong), which had not even broken ground despite residents having relocated, passed the Seoul City architectural review after 1 year and 8 months, and Jugong Complex 5, known as the largest reconstruction project in Jamsil, has overcome the educational environment impact assessment obstacle in establishing the maintenance plan after 3 years. With the election effect of Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon, who pledged to "normalize reconstruction," it is expected that Jamsil reconstruction will gain traction.

According to the maintenance industry on the 12th, the Seoul City Architectural Subcommittee recently approved the design modification plan submitted by the Miseong·Clover Reconstruction Association. It has been about 1 year and 8 months since the design plan was submitted at the end of 2019. This project had been struggling with Seoul City's demands for architectural design changes, as the city held the approval authority. In May, the architectural committee also decided to reconsider the plan, which led to consultation with the subcommittee.

The issue was the specialized designs proposed by the construction company Lotte Construction, such as the sky bridge and media facade (an exterior wall capable of displaying video media). Despite the market's evaluation of it as a "building from the future," Seoul City put the brakes on the project, citing concerns that it could harm the surrounding landscape and create a sense of disharmony. Because of this, Miseong·Clover completed resident relocation in the first half of 2019 but the groundbreaking has been repeatedly delayed. Last year, internal conflicts within the association led to a large-scale replacement of the association's leadership.

The recent approval of the architectural review is seen as influenced by Seoul City's more progressive stance. While reflecting various pointed issues in the design plan, Seoul City accepted the upscale strategies such as the sky bridge, central park, and community lounges on both sides. The Miseong·Clover Association plans to start construction within the year after obtaining approval for changes to the project implementation plan based on the revised design. Earlier, Jugong Complex 5 also passed the educational impact assessment on the 9th after a 3-year challenge. Until now, the review had been delayed due to disagreements between Seoul City and the education office over the relocation and donation method of the Sincheon Elementary School site within the complex. Because of this, the maintenance plan was also blocked from being submitted to the Urban Planning Committee's delegated subcommittee, halting the reconstruction schedule. However, Seoul City accepted the education office's demand to expand the elementary school site, overcoming the educational environment impact assessment hurdle.

In the market, this decision by Seoul City is analyzed as the effect of Mayor Oh, who campaigned on easing reconstruction regulations. Although Mayor Oh was elected in the April 7 by-election pledging reconstruction regulation easing, it was expected that easing regulations would be difficult since there were virtually no matters that could be decided unilaterally without the consent of the Seoul City Council controlled by the ruling party or the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport. However, as recent achievements related to approval authority have emerged one after another, expectations have grown that the Jamsil reconstruction clock will normalize. Nevertheless, the rising trend of apartment prices in Seoul, centered on reconstruction, remains an obstacle to deregulation. There is a risk that Mayor Oh could bear responsibility for a failure in real estate policy. A real estate industry official said, "Seoul City is promoting reconstruction normalization by holding meetings with resident representatives of major complexes such as Jamsil Jugong 5, Apgujeong, and Eunma, but ultimately the problem is housing prices," adding, "If the upward trend continues, Mayor Oh's rapid housing supply will inevitably be delayed."

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