Dunchon Jugong Reconstruction Association Head Resigns... "Felt Limitations in Capability"

View of the Dunchon Jugong Reconstruction Site in Gangdong-gu, Seoul. Photo by Mun Ho-nam munonam@

[Asia Economy Reporter Ryu Tae-min] Kim Hyun-chul, the head of the Dunchon Jugong Reconstruction Apartment Union in Gangdong-gu, Seoul, has suddenly announced his intention to resign.

On the 17th, Kim sent a group text message to union members stating, "I will resign from the position of union head effective today." He said, "I have done my best to carry out the project solely for the benefit of the 6,000 union members, but I now feel my capabilities are limited," adding, "If the current union executive is all dismissed, it will inevitably lead to a union vacancy situation, which could cause enormous damage to the union. Considering this, I have decided to make this resolution."

He also said, "I hope that my resignation and dismissal as an advisory committee member will spur the construction team to accelerate the normalization of the project," and added, "Considering the difficult circumstances of our 6,000 Dunchon union members, I ask for a progressive consideration regarding the contribution fees and move-in schedule." Kim also conveyed to the acting officer, union executives, and delegates to make efforts to resume construction promptly through smooth negotiations with the Hyundai construction team.

In response to Kim’s resignation news, the Emergency Countermeasure Committee, known as the ‘Dunchon Jugong Union Normalization Committee (Jeongsangwi),’ opposed it. The Jeongsangwi side emphasized, "The resignation announcement is a time-wasting method that causes the most harm to union members," and stressed, "Even if the union head and advisory committee members disappear nominally, the union executive remains as is."

Earlier, the Dunchon Jugong 'Normalization Committee,' opposing the union executive, had initiated procedures last month to dismiss the union head before the 700 billion won project loan maturity date (August 23).

The Dunchon Jugong reconstruction project is called the "largest reconstruction project since Dangun," building ‘Olympic Park Foreon’ on the site of Dunchon 1-dong Jugong Apartments in Gangdong-gu, Seoul, consisting of up to 35 floors, 85 buildings, and 12,032 households. The conflict over the increase in construction costs between the union executive and the construction team escalated into a 'head-to-head' standoff, leading to a complete halt of construction, which had reached 52% progress, from midnight on April 15.

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