Seoul City on Apgujeong Reconstruction Favoritism Controversy: "Applying Same Principles as Han Riverfront"

Allow 50-Story Super High-Rise Reconstruction Sparks Opposition from Other Complexes
Seoul City: "Height Regulation Relaxation Is a Common Standard Across Seoul"
"Public Contribution Ratio Reduction Is the Same for All Han River Areas"

Seoul City has stepped in to address the controversy over preferential treatment related to the Apgujeong reconstruction rapid integration plan. Regarding the allowance of 50-story high-rise reconstruction along the Han River, the city explained that "the removal of the 35-story height restriction is a common standard across Seoul" and that "height can be flexibly applied depending on whether the design is creative." When issues of fairness arose due to the relaxation of the public contribution ratio compared to previous reconstruction complexes, the city clarified that "it is difficult to simply compare with previous cases when including the increased proportion of rental housing."

Apgujeong Hyundai Apartment / Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@

On the 25th of last month, Seoul City held a briefing for residents of Apgujeong Reconstruction Districts 2 and 3, presenting a draft rapid integration plan that upgrades the area to a quasi-residential zone with a floor area ratio of 200?500%, allowing the construction of apartments up to 50 stories high. The plan included a provision setting the donation ratio?whereby a portion of the reconstruction is provided free of charge to the state or local governments for use as parks or public facilities?at 10%. Subsequently, complaints arose mainly from other reconstruction districts, alleging that Mayor Oh Se-hoon of Seoul granted excessive preferential treatment to high-priced apartments as part of the 'Great Han River Project,' the second phase of the Han River Renaissance.

In Response to Apgujeong Preferential Treatment Controversy... Allowing High-Rise Reconstruction "Common Standard Across Seoul"

In response, Seoul City held a briefing on the 8th regarding the height and public contribution of apartment reconstructions along the Han River.

Seoul City first explained that the allowance of high-rise reconstruction along the Han River is a common standard applicable not only to Apgujeong but throughout Seoul. A city official stated, "The 2040 Urban Master Plan removes the 35-story height limit and plans to manage the skyline qualitatively."

Of course, this does not mean that all apartments along the Han River can uniformly be reconstructed as high-rises. The official emphasized, "If a creative and innovative design is proposed, height can be flexibly applied," highlighting that the location conditions of each site as well as the importance of design influence height planning.

"Even with Lower Public Contribution Ratio, Increased Public Housing Makes Comparison with Past Difficult"

Regarding the relaxation of the public contribution ratio for Apgujeong reconstruction from 15% to 10%, the city stated that "this is a principle applied uniformly when establishing apartment maintenance plans along the Han River." In August 2021, Seoul City lowered the mandatory public contribution ratio from 15% or less to around 10%, citing that excessive public contribution ratios hinder reconstruction promotion along the Han River.

Issues of fairness have also been raised in comparison with already built high-rise apartments along the Han River. Both ‘Raemian Chellitus (56 floors)’ in Yongsan-gu and ‘Trimage (47 floors)’ in Seongdong-gu had donation ratios of 25% and 32% of their area respectively during Mayor Oh Se-hoon's tenure in 2009. Regarding this, a Seoul City official explained, "In the past, public contributions were recognized only for roads, parks, and public offices, but currently, various public contribution methods such as public rental housing have been prepared to reflect social changes like expanding housing supply and stabilizing low-income housing." The official added, "Although the mandatory net burden rate has decreased compared to the past, additional public contributions such as public housing must be borne, making simple comparisons difficult."

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