Yongsan Depot Site to House 6,000 Units... Floor Area Ratio Cap Details Yet to Be Finalized

25% of Total Supply is Public Housing
Buildings with Floor Area Ratio Over 1500% to be Constructed
Specific Number of Floors and Maximum Floor Area Ratio Not Yet Decided
"No Concerns About Floor Restrictions Related to Office"

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon is announcing the development blueprint for the Yongsan Maintenance Depot area, titled "Yongsan International Business District Development Plan," at Seoul City Hall on the 26th. Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

[Asia Economy Reporter Hwang Seoyul] The Seoul Metropolitan Government announced plans to supply 6,000 housing units on the Yongsan Maintenance Depot site. One quarter of these will be public housing. With this plan announcement, it is expected that ultra-high-rise buildings with a floor area ratio of over 1500% will be constructed in the Yongsan International Business District, but the exact upper limit has not been specified.

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon stated at the 'Yongsan International Business District Development Plan' briefing held at the Seoul City Hall briefing room around 10 a.m. on the 26th, "The announcement was delayed due to consultations with the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport regarding the number of housing units," and added, "It is expected that about 6,000 housing units will be built on the site." He further said, "If development is linked with the surrounding areas such as Yongsan Electronics Market, the number of supplied units could increase slightly." The city plans to allocate more than 70% of the Yongsan Maintenance Depot site for non-residential uses such as office and commercial purposes, and 30% for residential use.

Among the housing units to be supplied in the area, public housing will be included. Following the mayor, Choi Jin-seok, Director of the Seoul City Urban Planning Bureau, explained during the Q&A session, "About 25% of the housing supply will be rental housing, and the remaining 75% will be for sale." According to his explanation, approximately 1,500 of the 6,000 units will be public housing. Director Choi also stated, "Out of the total 6,000 units, 1,000 will be officetels, and 5,000 will be general housing."

The city announced that it will designate Seoul's first 'Minimum Location Regulation Zone' to allow the construction of ultra-high-rise buildings exceeding the legal floor area ratio limit of 1500%, but did not mention the specific upper limit. When asked about the maximum floor area ratio and the highest number of floors for the buildings, Director Choi said, "The figures will be specified during the urban development planning and zone designation process by the first half of next year," and added, "The floor area ratio will be finalized when the private sector makes the final proposal, but the city has expressed its intention to minimize floor area ratio restrictions." The Minimum Location Regulation Zone is a regulatory exception that allows for the development of areas with mixed functions such as residential, commercial, and office uses without being subject to location regulations like zoning districts, and separately sets permitted uses, floor area ratio, building coverage ratio, and height for buildings.

Meanwhile, in response to a question about whether there would be restrictions on constructing high-rise buildings due to the relocation of the Yongsan office, Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon replied, "I have never seen any plans that were hindered after the office relocation," and added, "There can be no floor restrictions related to security."

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