Seoul mayor pushes back against plans to build apartments in Yongsan Park

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon said Tuesday that he “voiced clear opposition” to building apartments in Yongsan Park during a Cabinet meeting chaired by President Lee Jae Myung.

“I attended today's Cabinet meeting and clearly conveyed the Seoul city government's position to the president and Cabinet members,” Oh said in a Facebook post Tuesday, referring to Seoul's opposition to the government's plans to build apartments in Yongsan Park in Yongsan District, central Seoul.

Oh said he instead pushed for redevelopment and reconstruction projects to be accelerated.

“First, I asked that regulations be eased so that redevelopment and reconstruction projects can move forward more quickly,” Oh wrote.

Oh said it was fortunate that Seoul's proposals aimed at speeding up redevelopment projects and making them more financially viable — including lowering the consent threshold for establishing redevelopment associations and raising the purchase price of rental housing units — were included in the government's real estate measures announced Thursday. But Oh added that there was still a long way to go.

“Regulations that must be eased still remain, including restrictions on transfers of association membership, floor area ratios and the proportion of rental housing,” Oh wrote.

The mayor also called for more realistic solutions.

“We shouldn't be preoccupied with searching for land in the wrong places and announcing housing supply numbers when we already have a clear answer in redevelopment and reconstruction,” Oh wrote. “In that sense, I clearly expressed to the president today my opposition to building apartments in Yongsan Park.”

Oh called Yongsan Park the last remaining large-scale green space in the heart of Seoul and argued that it should be preserved.

“Major cities around the world have preserved green spaces in their urban centers as symbols of their cities and assets for future generations, including Central Park in New York, Hyde Park in London and Luxembourg Gardens in Paris,” Oh wrote. “Yongsan Park is also a precious space that must be protected for Seoul's future.”

He stated that is one of the reasons “previous presidents from the Democratic Party upheld the principle that Yongsan Park should not be recklessly damaged.”

“Seoul may appear to have sufficient green space when looking at its total park area because of its mountainous terrain, but the amount of park space within walking distance that residents can enjoy in their daily lives is only 5.7 square meters [61.35 square feet] per person,” Oh wrote.

Oh said that “quality of life is just as important as the number of homes” and claimed “using up what should be left for future generations simply because more housing is needed means future generations will be sacrificed.”

The government plans to ramp up housing supply by more than 230,000 additional homes in the Seoul metropolitan area by accelerating development on public land. Oh said such supply-focused housing policies also need to be guided by principles.

“Houses can be built elsewhere, but once urban green space disappears, it is difficult to recreate it,” Oh wrote. “I will fulfill my responsibility to protect what belongs to future generations.”

Oh said that at the Cabinet meeting, he also called for a broader review of the government's real estate policy direction, including property taxes and owner-occupancy requirements.

“Policy must begin by respecting people's lives as they are,” Oh wrote. “The first step should be to abandon the arrogance of trying to force people's lives to fit policy.”

BY JEONG HYE-JEONG [lee.taehee2@joongang.co.kr]