In the End, Apgujeong 3 District Surrenders to Seoul City... Will Rehire Designers

Held Delegate Meeting the Day Before, Moving Toward Re-Announcement
Issues with Hirim Architects' Proposed 360% Floor Area Ratio
Seoul City Warns "Will Request Investigation if No Re-Announcement"

Apgujeong District 3 ultimately surrendered to the Seoul Metropolitan Government. Earlier, when the association chose a design plan that conflicted with the city's urban planning, Seoul declared "this contest is invalid" and warned, "If you do not reselect, we will request an investigation." In response, concerned about delays in reconstruction, the association decided to re-tender the architect selection.

Apgujeong Hyundai Apartment_Real Estate Reference Photo/Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@

According to the maintenance industry on the 29th, the association held a delegates' meeting the day before and decided to reselect the architect. The association had previously held a general meeting on the 15th of last month and selected Heerim Architects as the architect. At that time, Heerim Architects received 1,507 votes, surpassing Haean Architects, who received 1,069 votes. There were 115 abstentions and invalid votes.

However, the problem arose because Heerim Architects proposed a floor area ratio of 360%, which exceeds the 300% allowed by the Seoul city government. Additionally, their reconstruction plan did not include rental housing, which provoked Seoul's opposition. Seoul city adheres to the principle of social mix for rental housing.

Before the association's general meeting, Seoul had already reported Heerim Architects to the police on charges of attempted fraud, obstruction of business, and bid rigging. Despite this, when the association selected Heerim Architects as the architect, Seoul took a tough stance, warning the association that "if you do not proceed with re-tendering the architect selection, we will request an investigation." Seoul also pressured the association by inspecting its operational status. The association received a total of 12 sanctions from the city, including one investigation request, seven investigation requests for failure to comply with corrective orders, one corrective order, and three administrative guidance notices.

As a result, public opinion within the association shifted toward re-tendering, and it was reported that the delegates' meeting the day before overwhelmingly approved the re-tendering. The association plans to hold a general meeting of members soon to process the re-tendering plan.

An official from the maintenance industry explained, "With the rapid integration plan for Apgujeong confirmed in July, reconstruction was gaining momentum, but as conflicts with Seoul city, the licensing authority, intensified due to the architect controversy, the association members' concern about delays grew, leading to increased support for re-tendering."

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