The composite development of the Jeongneung public bus depot, a representative long-cherished project of Seongbuk-gu residents, is being revived.
According to the Seoul city government on the 15th, the city recently drew up a basic concept plan to develop the Jeongneung public bus depot into a complex facility combining a swimming pool, gymnasium, and kids café. The total floor area will be 7,338 square meters, with two basement levels and three above-ground floors. The total project cost is 41.017 billion won.
Under the basic concept plan, the first floor above ground will house a 50-bay city bus parking lot and resident convenience facilities. A swimming pool and a public parking lot will be built underground. The second to third floors above ground will be a multipurpose gymnasium. The second floor will include a kids café, multipurpose room, and a transportation company office, and the third floor will be developed as a fitness center.
The Jeongneung public bus depot is a 3,600-square-meter facility located at 771-7 Jeongneung-dong, Seongbuk-gu, on city-owned land. In Aug. 2022, the city set a plan to move the depot underground for development, but revised the plan to keep the depot above ground to reflect opinions such as reducing the risk of electric-vehicle charging.
The city then submitted the development plan to the Ministry of the Interior and Safety (MOIS) central investment review committee, but in April last year was notified to "reconsider" due to insufficient business feasibility. The Ministry of the Interior and Safety (MOIS) central investment review committee reviews the feasibility of large-scale local government investment projects of 30 billion won or more before budget allocation as a mechanism to manage fiscal soundness.
The city prepared the basic concept plan through a study that increased resident convenience to improve the benefit-cost (B/C) value and held a briefing for residents. The city then plans to request deliberation by the Ministry of the Interior and Safety (MOIS) central investment review committee to be held in June. If the plan passes the review, the goal is to break ground in 2028 and complete construction in 2031 after preliminary administrative procedures.
However, if the plan again fails to pass the review, the project itself could drift for a long time. The city initially reviewed a plan to relocate the depot, but as the issue of securing an alternative site was raised, it decided to pursue a plan to leave the depot as is and modernize the facilities instead.