In 2032, a Major League Baseball–level domed ballpark with 30,000 seats and an exhibition and convention center 2.5 times the size of Coex will be built in the Jamsil area of Songpa District, Seoul. The Seoul Metropolitan Government said it has concluded negotiations on the privately funded Jamsil sports and MICE (corporations meetings, incentives, conventions, exhibitions) complex project after four years and will proceed with the remaining procedures sequentially to break ground in December this year.
Oh Se-hoon, the mayor, held a press briefing at the Seoul Gallery Future Hall at Seoul City Hall on the morning of the day and said, "After roughly 160 rounds of negotiations over four years, the Jamsil sports and MICE complex is set to break ground this year," adding, "As the first domestic mixed-use facility to be pursued entirely with private investment, it will become a new example of a private investment model."
Launched with the "Jamsil waterfront development plan" tied to the mayor's 2007 Han River Renaissance policy, the Jamsil sports and MICE complex project is entering full implementation about 20 years later. The project will create a mixed-use space on approximately 350,000 square meters around the Jamsil Sports Complex, bringing together sports and MICE facilities such as a domed ballpark and exhibition/convention centers, along with lodging, retail, and office facilities. In December 2021, a consortium led by Hanwha institutional sector was selected as the preferred bidder, and the city plans to sign an implementation agreement in the first half of this year based on the final pre-negotiation plan.
The exhibition and convention center will be built at 2.5 times the size of Coex. Along with the "Seoul MICE Plaza (Coex Magok)," which opened last year, and the "Seoul Station North station area," slated for completion in 2029, the city aims to complete the "three major MICE hubs of Seoul." A domed ballpark and a sports complex will also be created to host a variety of large-scale events year-round, including sports games as well as K-pop and global tour concerts and e-sports. The ballpark will serve as the home stadium for the LG Twins and Doosan Bears, and the sports complex will be the home court for the SK and Samsung basketball teams. The ballpark will initially operate 18,000 infield-focused seats on the first and second levels, and for major games and the postseason, it will open the third level, subject to spectator safety, to operate with more than 30,000 seats. The sports complex will have 11,000 seats.
Hotels and commercial facilities will also be provided. A five-star hotel (288 rooms) linked to the exhibition and convention center, a four-star business hotel (306 rooms) linked to the domed ballpark, and a four-star residence hotel (247 rooms) with a workation concept linked to the office facilities will bring total lodging capacity to 841 rooms. Observation decks will also be installed at the hotels.
Commercial facilities with a total floor area of 110,000 square meters will be built in connection with the Tancheon Stream and Han River waterfront parks. The city will also expand pedestrian-friendly waterfront spaces that anyone can enjoy. A large-scale pedestrian axis will be created from Coex through Tancheon Stream and the Jamsil MICE district to the Han River. Cultural and arts spaces, including waterfront fountains, will be installed throughout.
The city said the project cost will be funded entirely by the private sector, while a portion of the revenue will be collected in the form of recoupment funds and profit sharing to create a fund. Oh said, "We plan to use the fund as resources to reinvest throughout Seoul," adding, "The ripple effects will spread not only in Jamsil but across the entire city." As of the end of last year, the total project cost was 3.3 trillion won, and industry observers expect it will exceed 4 trillion won. The consortium selected as the preferred bidder is known to have roughly 40% equity held by major Hanwha affiliates, including Hanwha institutional sector, Hanwha Solutions, and Hanwha Systems. In addition, HDC Holdings Co. and Hana Financial Group are participating.
Oh said, "The Jamsil sports and MICE complex private investment project is expected to create 2.42 million jobs and generate 595 trillion won in economic ripple effects," adding, "The Jamsil sports and MICE complex will become a new engine for Seoul."
Meanwhile, starting with the preparation of this implementation agreement, the city will carry out follow-up procedures including a review of the implementation agreement by the Public and Private Infrastructure Investment Management Center (PIMAC), an administrative notice, and deliberation by the Ministry of Planning and Budget's Private Investment Deliberation Committee. Upon signing the implementation agreement, the preferred bidder will complete large-scale PF financing to break ground within the year and complete construction in 2032.