Demolition has begun in the Sinwolgok 1 district, including Hawolgok-dong's "Mia-ri Texas" (a red-light district) in Seongbuk District, Seoul. The area will be transformed into a residential complex with more than 2,200 households.
Seongbuk District said on the 24th that it will carry out demolition in the Sinwolgok 1 district redevelopment area around 88-142, Hawolgok-dong, through next year. In Apr., dwellings and stores were torn down first, and recently the site formation process began. After demolition, procedures such as a review of underground impacts are planned.
The site will be revamped into 11 buildings with 6 underground floors to 46 above-ground floors, totaling 2,201 households, including 197 rental units. It will be a mixed-use complex that supplies officetels (170 units), commercial and office facilities, and neighborhood living facilities together.
It will be directly connected to Gireum Station (Line 4) via an underground street mall. The project site is close to an on-ramp and off-ramp for the Inner Ring Road and to an express bus stop. A station on the Dongbuk Line is also planned nearby.
Sinwolgok 1 district will pursue combined development with the Seongbuk-dong Seongbuk 2 district redevelopment project about 3 kilometers away. Combined development is a method of developing together with another district that can have a higher floor area ratio when a district has low business feasibility due to terrain, cultural assets, or other reasons, thereby improving the insufficient business feasibility.
Seongbuk 2 district is near cultural assets such as the Hanyangdoseong Fortress Trail and natural green areas, making it difficult to increase the floor area ratio. In contrast, Sinwolgok 1 district is a general commercial area, allowing for a high floor area ratio (679% applied).
Previously, in 2009 Seongbuk District designated Sinwolgok 1 district as a redevelopment zone, then in 2016 integrated it with Seongbuk 2 district as a combined maintenance zone, obtained approval for the project implementation plan in 2020, and completed approval for the management and disposal plan in 2022. Of the 2,201 households in Sinwolgok 1 district, 201 will be allocated to members of the Seongbuk 2 district association.
Hawolgok-dong, known as Mia-ri Texas, was one of Seoul's representative red-light districts. It formed after the Korean War in the 1950s and 1960s, and at one time hundreds of establishments clustered there, making it a symbol of urban blight.