Seoul City Fully Eases Rigid Regulations... 'Abolishment of Self-Imposed Height Standards and Relaxation of Station Area Project Criteria'

Comprehensive Revision of District Unit Planning Establishment Standards

Relaxation of Project Standards Including Station Area Business Location and Non-Residential Ratio

Simplification of Small-Scale Maintenance Procedures in Low-Rise Residential Areas

Abolition of Stricter Internal Height Standards than the Law

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Min-young] Seoul City will expand the station area business location criteria by up to 20% and relax the floor area ratio for non-residential uses such as commercial buildings from the existing 10% to 5%. The height standards in district unit plans, which had been operated more strictly than the apartment height standards set by the Building Act, will also be abolished.

Seoul City announced on the 8th that it will implement the fully revised "Seoul City District Unit Planning Establishment Standards" from the 9th, based on these contents. The city plans to immediately apply this to redevelopment, reconstruction, and other maintenance projects or housing construction projects currently being planned or promoted.

District unit plans, which include standards for building use, floor area ratio, building coverage ratio, height, etc., were introduced in 1980 and legislated in 2000. Currently, 27% (100.3㎢) of Seoul's urban area is designated and managed under district unit plans.

Last October, the city relaxed the 'Type 2, 7-story' height limit and reduced the non-residential facility ratio in commercial and semi-residential areas from 10% to 5% through a revision of the "Seoul City District Unit Planning Establishment Standards." In March this year, the city also eased the aging criteria for apartment complexes, which had been the biggest obstacle to the redevelopment of old housing.

First, the station area business location criteria will be relaxed. Through this, the city plans to increase the possible project area by up to 20% and lower the non-residential use ratio such as commercial buildings from 10% to 5% of the floor area ratio. For aging low-rise residential areas, when establishing district unit plans, securing necessary facilities such as roads, parks, and parking lots will be mandatory, and in addition to donation, floor area ratio incentives will be provided for joint development to improve the residential environment through small-scale maintenance.

The internal height standards, which had been operated more strictly than the apartment height standards set by the Building Act, will be abolished. In the future, the height will be determined considering local conditions during individual maintenance plan reviews. The method for calculating the average number of floors applied to Type 2 (7-story) residential areas will also change from the highest floor per building to the floor count per core (central part).

When there is public land within a development zone of 5,000㎡ or more, the public sector had previously sold it to the private sector, but going forward, instead of selling, the city will also consider a free transfer method to receive it as parks, green spaces, parking lots, rental housing, or other facilities needed in the area.

The private sector implementation guidelines, which had been uniformly applied, will become flexibly changeable through district-level reviews and consultations. Additionally, to prevent delays in establishing district unit plans, the city plans to induce prompt plan establishment by linking priorities for subsidy support by district. The district unit planning establishment standards will be revised every five years to improve urban planning-related regulations, and a dedicated organization will also be operated.

Choi Jin-seok, Director of the Seoul City Urban Planning Bureau, said, "We aim to transform district unit plans into quick and flexible plans that respond to urban changes," adding, "We will continue to actively identify urban planning regulations and improve them so that citizens can empathize."

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