"Faster Redevelopment Than Oh" vs. "Jung, Park Won-soon Season 2"

With the 9th nationwide local elections set for June 3, Jung Won-oh, the Democratic Party candidate for Seoul mayor, and Oh Se-hoon, the People Power Party candidate for Seoul mayor, are clashing early on over real estate policy. Jung has taken the initiative by announcing redevelopment and reconstruction pledges early, while Oh's camp has drawn a sharp distinction, calling Jung's approach "Park Won-soon Season 2."

On the 22nd, Oh Se-hoon, the People Power Party candidate for Seoul mayor (right), and Jung Won-oh, the Democratic Party candidate for Seoul mayor, greeted each other at the 40th anniversary event of the Seoul Social Workers Association held at the Baekbeom Kim Koo Memorial Hall in Yongsan-gu. Photo by Yonhap News Agency

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On the morning of the 29th, Jung visited the site of the Jangwi-dong District 14 housing redevelopment and maintenance project in Seongbuk-gu, Seoul, and announced his "Chakchak Development" real estate pledge. The Jangwi-dong District 14 project is currently underway, benefiting from relaxed floor area ratio regulations under the Seoul city urban redevelopment (New Town) initiative.

The core of Jung's "Chakchak Development" pledge is to shorten the redevelopment project period to 10 years. To achieve this, he plans to work with the government and the ruling party to amend the Urban and Residential Environment Improvement Act to streamline redevelopment procedures. In addition, he intends to introduce a redevelopment project manager system to reduce administrative steps and enable close, hands-on management.

This pledge is seen as a direct response to Oh's flagship initiative, the "Expedited Integrated Plan." Oh aims to reduce the average redevelopment project period from 18.6 years to 12 years through his initiative, thereby increasing housing supply. However, Jung's camp has criticized Oh's plan, arguing that it has yielded no real results.

Oh's camp, for its part, is also highlighting real estate issues and maintaining a strong offensive. They allege that the real estate policies of the ruling party, including the late Mayor Park Won-soon, have stifled housing supply in Seoul. Park Su-min, co-head of the election campaign committee, stated, "Seoul's redevelopment projects repeatedly faced cancellations and delays during Mayor Park's tenure, which collapsed the supply chain. Redevelopment is a long-term undertaking, and focusing only on the number of projects started while ignoring these processes distorts the essence of the issue."

Development of the Yongsan International Business District and the controversy over abolishing the long-term ownership special deduction are also at the center of the debate. Yoon Hee-sook, co-head of the election campaign committee, continued her criticism against Jung, who supports the government policy to supply 10,000 housing units in the Yongsan International Business District.

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