Overheated Competition for Hannam 2 District Contract, Can Daewoo E&C Achieve '118m'?

Daewoo Construction CEO's Seal on '118m Guarantee' Notarization Submitted
"No Authority to Change Contractor, Future Damage to Union Members Possible"

Daewoo E&C 118 Project Hannam Summit Bird's-eye View.
[Photo by Daewoo E&C]

[Asia Economy reporters Chawan-yong and Hwang Seoyul] As the selection day for the construction company for the redevelopment project of Hannam Redevelopment Promotion District Zone 2 (Hannam 2 District) in Bogwang-dong, Yongsan-gu, Seoul approaches (November 5), concerns are being raised over promotional activities that violate the maintenance and architectural plans set by Seoul city administrative regulations.

There are criticisms that the bidding competition for Hannam 2 District is overheating, with reports spreading as if the easing of floor height restrictions has already been decided, despite no official guidelines having been issued yet.

According to Seoul city and the Hannam 2 District association on the 25th, recently Daewoo Construction submitted a notarized document titled ‘Daewoo Construction’s Proposal ‘118 PROJECT’ 100% Implementation Guarantee’ stamped with CEO Park Jung-wan’s official seal to the Hannam 2 District association. The key point of the notarized document is that if the 118m height project proposed as an innovative design by Daewoo Construction cannot proceed, they will ask for a re-endorsement of the construction company. The document was notarized through the law firm Chungjeong on the 11th.

Daewoo Construction stated, "Seoul city devised the 2040 plan, and the 118 Project is a design proposal that reduces building coverage ratio and improves the landscape in line with this plan," adding, "Since Seoul city is expected to revise the floor height restriction plan by the end of this year, this is a fully feasible plan."

Recently, Daewoo E&C submitted a notarized document titled "Daewoo E&C's Proposal '118 PROJECT' 100% Performance Guarantee," bearing the official seal of Park Jung-wan, CEO of Daewoo E&C, to the Hannam 2 District Association.

In fact, easing floor height regulations has been a long-standing issue in the Hannam-dong redevelopment project. Among the Hannam New Town districts, Hannam 3 District, which was the first to proceed with the project, initially established a plan in 2014 for a maximum height of 29 floors and 118m and underwent architectural committee review but received a decision for revision and re-examination. Ultimately, it passed the review in 2017 after lowering the height to 90m. In the 2019 bidding competition, some construction companies participating in the bid caused issues by advocating for easing floor height restrictions, leading to a re-bid the following year. A similar situation occurred earlier in the redevelopment of Oksu Hannam Heights.

The UN Command site project adjacent to the Hannam Promotion District, which received approval for a business plan change in September, was also permitted a height of 90m. Hannam 4 District submitted an official letter stating it will comply with the height plan according to the Hannam District Redevelopment Promotion Plan change guidelines for the 9th Urban Redevelopment Committee review scheduled for the 1st of next month.

Daewoo Construction’s 118m innovative proposal in the Hannam 2 District bidding is based on the 2040 Seoul Urban Basic Plan. Seoul city announced the 2040 Seoul Urban Basic Plan in March, reforming the rigidly operated ‘zoning system’ into ‘Beyond Zoning’ and abolishing the ‘35-floor rule’ to arrange buildings of varying heights and create diverse skylines. Since this is a guideline applied citywide, Daewoo Construction believes it can also be applied to Hannam 2 District.

The problem is that the skyline guideline application is not yet finalized at this point. Moreover, Hannam-dong is subject not only to the 90m height restriction set by the Hannam Redevelopment Promotion Plan but also to dual regulations under Seoul city’s landscape and architectural plan guidelines, including overhead and view compliance standards. In other words, because the detailed Hannam District Redevelopment Promotion Plan change guidelines impose height restrictions, even if the general 2040 Seoul Urban Basic Plan suggests the possibility of height easing, it is difficult for the height restrictions to be easily lifted.

A Seoul city official said, "According to the construction company selection criteria, alternatives can be proposed within minor changes, but since there is no clause prohibiting specialized designs, the construction company presented a proposal involving significant changes in the form of a specialized design," adding, "Since the construction company does not have the authority to make significant changes, selecting the construction company based on this could cause harm to association members in the future."

A Yongsan District Office official explained, "The district office sent an official letter to the association strongly warning them about the contents arising from the overheated bidding competition," adding, "We also told the association again to notify all potentially confusing points to the association members at the joint briefing session scheduled for the 29th."

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