A regional housing cooperative project promoted in Paju, Gyeonggi Province, has been adrift for nine years without receiving approval for the cooperative's establishment. With the down payments of prospective members tied up due to the prolonged delay, conflict has recently escalated as even a general meeting was held under the pretext of withdrawals.
According to Paju City on the 22nd, the "U Park City Block 1 Regional Housing Cooperative Promotion Committee" in Bongilcheon-ri, Jori-eup, Paju, has not received approval to establish the cooperative since it filed a recruitment report in Aug. 2017. The project is a multifamily housing development promoted only for Block A-1 (1,357 households) of the Camp Howze urban development project (Blocks A1–A4, a total of 5,299 households), a returned U.S. military base site, using the regional housing cooperative model.
In particular, on the 18th, the promotion committee held a general meeting under the pretext of "accepting withdrawal applications," and controversy grew as an approach was floated that mentioned withdrawing existing contractors on the premise of recruiting new members.
In 2017, the project launched member recruitment with promotional phrases such as "the first Smart City in Korea" and "20% cheaper than nearby market prices," drawing 3,720 applications (a competition ratio of 2.74 to 1) at the time. However, the project has not gotten on track since.
The project was delayed for a long time as the designation of the project implementer was canceled in 2019 and administrative litigation followed, compounded by conflict between the promotion committee and the emergency response committee and allegations of embezzlement by the agency. Even afterward, replacements of the promotion committee chair and repeated internal accusations and complaints prevented the project entity from stabilizing, and neither land acquisition nor cooperative establishment has been achieved to date.
Other blocks (A2–A4) in the same project area are not moving quickly either. Hera Park Urban Development PFV, a private developer established by a Kyobo Securities consortium, is proceeding with the urban development process and completed the public notice of project implementation (change) approval in Feb., but the implementation plan approval has not yet been finalized, delaying the overall project as well. However, since it is being promoted as a private urban development, the project could resume once the permitting procedures are completed. In contrast, Block 1 is effectively assessed as halted due to the overlap of the regional housing cooperative model and internal disputes.
Anxiety is growing among prospective members who have already paid tens of millions of won as down payments. A prospective member who joined the promotion committee in 2018 said, "There was an explanation to the effect that if new members are recruited, they would allow existing contractors to withdraw," adding, "The amount paid as down payment and on behalf of agency service fees is significant, and I heard that the total remaining funds are around 1 billion won." The person added, "If the cooperative is established, there could be an additional assessment burden, so I am considering withdrawing even if it means losing the down payment."
Paju City explained that the entire Camp Howze urban development zone that includes this project is still at the implementation plan approval stage, so land supply itself has not taken place. At the same time, it noted that because a regional housing cooperative project is structured with members participating as the project entity, it is difficult for the administration to directly intervene in internal operations or disputes.
A Paju City official said, "U Park City can supply land only after the urban development project's implementation plan is approved, but the permitting has not yet been completed," adding, "In particular, in the case of Block 1, internal disputes are severe, with accusations and complaints continuing between promotion committee chairs, and matters are not being sorted out properly." The official added, "The city has no choice but to watch the situation, which is frustrating."
According to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, as of 2024, 51.1% of the 618 regional housing cooperatives nationwide had not received approval for establishment, and disputes had occurred in 187 locations. The share that proceeded through completion has remained at about 17% since 2004.
On the 20th, the government announced "Measures to prevent damage from regional housing cooperatives and normalize projects," and decided to pursue easing land acquisition standards, introducing an agency registration system, and preparing procedures to resolve long-delayed projects. However, for projects that have already been delayed for a long time, the recovery of member damages must proceed through separate procedures.