On the 26th, the Seoul Metropolitan Government announced the selection of four leading project areas for the New:Village project, which aims to supply non-apartment dwellings to aging low-rise residential areas where redevelopment and reconstruction are challenging.

A project conceptual diagram of Okindong in Jongno-gu, Seoul, selected as a New:Village Leading Project Site. /Courtesy of Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport

The selected leading project areas are ▲ 214 Sinyeong-dong, Jongno District (Human Town pilot project site) ▲ 47 Okin-dong, Jongno District (Human Town candidate site) ▲ 164 Hoehyeon-dong 1-ga, Jung-gu (Human Town candidate site) ▲ 516-21 Suyu-dong, Gangbuk District (Human Town candidate site).

If selected as a target site for the New:Village project by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, a maximum of 37.5 billion won (15 billion won from the national treasury) will be provided to create infrastructure and amenities at apartment standards. Residents who maintain their dwellings will receive financial and institutional support such as eased floor area ratio and fund loans.

Meanwhile, the four selected sites are either pilot project sites or candidate sites for Seoul's Human Town 2.0. Human Town 2.0 is a policy that supports individual maintenance such as the construction and remodeling of aging multi-family, multi-unit, and row houses, as opposed to full demolition redevelopment and reconstruction projects. The Seoul Metropolitan Government plans to establish related legal plans by the first half of next year and commence the projects. The government aims to enhance the maintenance effects of low-rise residential areas in conjunction with the Human Town 2.0 project for the four sites selected for the New:Village project.