Housing supply using idle sites in the urban core, announced in the government's Sept. 7 dwellings supply plan, will get into full swing starting in 2027.
The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport said on the 16th that it plans to push ahead with land purchases and other steps with a goal of starting construction in 2027 for the Sungkyunkwan University baseball stadium in Dobong District and the Wirye office-use site in Songpa District, which were selected as idle urban plots for dwellings supply. The Korean Educational Development Institute (KEDI) in Seocho District and the public office compound in Gangseo District are slated to break ground in 2028.
A total of about 4,000 households are expected to be supplied by using idle urban parcels, including 1,800 households at the Sungkyunkwan University baseball stadium, 1,000 at the Wirye office-use site, 700 at the Korean Educational Development Institute (KEDI), and 558 on the relocation site for existing facilities in Gangseo District.
Although the ministry announced it would supply dwellings by utilizing idle sites in the urban core, the market is voicing concern that opposition from district governments and residents could cause setbacks. In the past, plans to supply dwellings on idle urban land were pursued, but they did not lead to actual supply.
In 2020, the government selected 18 idle sites, saying it would massively supply dwellings by using state- and publicly owned land in Seoul and adjacent areas. However, except for a single unsold parcel in Magok among the sites selected at the time, development at the remaining locations has been scrapped or stalled due to resident opposition or objections from some ministries.
Taking into account opposition from local governments or residents, the ministry is also reviewing installing resident convenience facilities such as cultural and leisure amenities that can be used not only by the incoming residents but also by local residents.
The ministry said, "(The idle sites included in this plan) are locations where substantial consultations have been conducted through coordination with local governments and related agencies for rapid dwellings supply," adding, "During the project process, we will swiftly proceed by actively resolving differences through collecting and reflecting the opinions of local governments and local residents."
The ministry added, "Taking into account the characteristics and location of each site, we plan to include for-sale dwellings in the supply," and said, "The scale of for-sale and rental dwellings will be decided in the project process by collecting opinions from local governments and others."
Regarding criticism that it will be difficult to meet the goal of starting construction on 50,000 households over five years for the "season 2 of the urban public dwellings complex project," one of the dwellings supply measures being pursued, the ministry said, "We expect groundbreaking within the term to be achievable."
The ministry emphasized, "We have further secured project momentum through additional incentives such as raising floor area ratios included in the new government's dwellings supply plan, procedural improvements such as expanding integrated reviews, the abolition of sunset clauses, and strengthening public-sector capacity."