Presidential Aide Calls for Developing Parts of Planned Yongsan Park into Residential Housing

As I have long said, I never believed the Yongsan Park plan was going to survive the pressure from developers in Seoul. There is just too much money to be made from developing the prime real estate in the middle of Seoul. The Yongsan Park is likely going to end up being much smaller than originally planned:

A senior presidential aide on Wednesday said housing development on part of land set aside for a park in central Seoul could help South Korea tackle the former US military base’s costly soil cleanup, while putting a vast tract of prime land to use.

The proposal has emerged as a contentious part of the Lee Jae Myung administration’s Aug. 13 housing supply policy, as the government seeks to accelerate the construction of homes in central Seoul to stabilize the housing market.

The Lee administration is considering public rental and specialized housing for young people and newlyweds on parts of the Yongsan Park site, but the idea has drawn opposition from the Seoul city government, Yongsan District Office and residents.

Opponents argue that the land should be preserved as a symbolic national park and a rare green space in central Seoul after more than 120 years of foreign military presence, saying that once housing is built there, it cannot be turned into green space.

Korea Herald

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