Yongsan Children's Garden Under Review for Housing?… Variables Abound Across Supply Sites

[Anchor]

The second real estate policy inspection meeting, presided over by President Lee Jae-myung to discuss housing supply measures for the Seoul metropolitan area, started at 2 p.m. today (August 7) and concluded a short while ago. Following the supply measures announced by the government last January, the Yongsan Children's Garden and other sites are now being considered as additional housing plots, but the challenges that need to be resolved are significant.

Reporter Park Jae-yeon has the details.

[Reporter]

The Yongsan Children's Garden in Seoul, formerly a U.S. military base site.

After being returned to the South Korean government, it was fully opened to the public starting last December.

Following the Yongsan International Business District, which was included in the government's January 29 housing supply measures, this site is also known to be under review as an additional location.

However, the issue of negotiating with the U.S. military to purify the soil contaminated during its use as a base remains unresolved.

During the so-called "seven-hour marathon inspection meeting" presided over by President Lee Jae-myung on August 3, a plan known as "purification first, negotiation later" was reviewed, under which the South Korean government would first carry out the soil purification work and then negotiate cost-sharing with the U.S. side.

While this is intended to accelerate the securing of the land, some observers predict that the purification work alone will take years, and constructing housing will take even longer.

Another variable is the opposition from the Seoul Metropolitan Government and Yongsan District Office, citing reasons such as the need to preserve green spaces.

[Real Estate Agent (Yongsan-gu, Seoul): (Residents in this neighborhood) probably wouldn't like it. Because more people will crowd in. A significant reason why apartment prices are high is likely because this park is well-maintained. If this becomes a housing district...]

Even among the target sites under the January 29 measures, quite a few are experiencing slow project progress.

The Taereung Golf Course site in Nowon-gu, Seoul, where the government announced a supply of 6,800 households, remains a challenge due to persistent backlash from local residents concerned about traffic congestion and a lack of infrastructure.

The racecourse and former Defense Security Command site in Gwacheon, Gyeonggi Province, are also seeing delayed project progress due to backlash from the Korea Racing Authority labor union and local residents.

Today, the ruling and opposition parties engaged in a sharp battle of words over the real estate supply measures.

[Han Byung-do / Democratic Party Floor Leader: Have you all forgotten that during the Yoon Suk-yeol administration, housing construction permits decreased significantly, and the construction of the 3rd-generation new towns was dragged out, delaying housing supply? The same goes for Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon.]

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon argued, "During the 10 years of the Democratic Party administration under former Mayor Park Won-soon, Seoul lost housing supply opportunities amounting to 430,000 units."

(Reported by Kang Dong-cheol | Video by Won Hyung-hee)