Gyeonggi Province Should Utilize Apartment Green Spaces 16 Times Larger Than Yeouido, Says Gyeonggi Research Institute

Status of Apartment Green Spaces in Gyeonggi-do by Period Data by Gyeonggi Research Institute

[Asia Economy (Suwon) = Reporter Lee Young-gyu] An opinion has been raised that apartment green spaces in Gyeonggi-do, which exceed 16 times the area of Yeouido in Seoul, should be utilized as 'green infrastructure' and support policies should be promoted.

The Gyeonggi Research Institute proposed this policy direction in its report titled "Rediscovering Apartment Green Spaces, Utilizing Them as Core Urban Green Infrastructure," released on the 3rd.

According to the report, as of 2020, the green spaces created in the province total 208.8㎢, including urban parks at 97.8㎢, facility green spaces at 63.2㎢, and apartment (multi-family housing complex) green spaces at 47.7㎢.

The area of apartment green spaces is larger than the area of Osan City (42.7㎢) and is 16.4 times the size of Yeouido (2.9㎢). Over the past 20 years, 36㎢ of apartment green spaces have been created, and the area developed in the last five years alone is 11.9㎢, equivalent to 100 neighborhood parks averaging 0.2㎢ each. Since the expansion of underground parking lots began in 2000, the green space within apartments has increased sharply. Considering remodeling projects, reconstruction of first-generation new towns, and the development of third-generation new towns, the growth rate of apartment green spaces is expected to surpass that of urban parks in the future.

However, the report pointed out that laws and systems for managing apartment green spaces are insufficient due to their status as private property.

An analysis by the Gyeonggi Research Institute of maintenance cost usage in 50 apartment complexes in the province found that only about 4.7% of the annual apartment maintenance costs were spent on green space management. The maintenance cost per unit area was also only about one-quarter of the average maintenance cost for urban parks in the province (827 KRW per square meter).

Field investigations confirmed qualitative deterioration of green spaces due to cost-saving management methods, which also led to safety issues.

Kim Han-su, a research fellow at the Gyeonggi Research Institute, emphasized, "It is time to focus on the public nature of apartment green spaces and for the central government, local governments, and the private sector to each create responsible support policies and actively promote them."

The Gyeonggi Research Institute suggested apartment green space management measures at the green infrastructure level, including ▲ revising laws and systems to be addressed in urban planning-related legislation ▲ establishing the "Gyeonggi-do Multi-family Housing Complex Tree Management Guidelines" ▲ and efficiently promoting related policies through role-sharing and governance among the central government, local governments, and the private sector.

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