In the Hayang District of Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi, residents of 4,450 apartment units have moved in, but the area remains a "half new town" with virtually no living infrastructure such as shopping centers and hospitals. land owners and association members are launching a protest demanding that Pyeongtaek City normalize the project.
According to the real estate industry on the 29th, the Pyeongtaek Hayang District Development Association, some land owners, and residents will hold a rally of about 200 people in front of Pyeongtaek City Hall that day, calling for permitting approvals for individual lots and normalization of the project. This rally is the first protest, with additional rallies scheduled on May 13 and 20, and they plan to expand the protests depending on the city's response. With about 3,000 association members potentially facing an average additional burden of more than 100 million won per person if they share the shortfall in project costs, observers say the conflict could drag on.
The Pyeongtaek Hayang District is a privately led, land readjustment–type urban development project that has been underway for nearly 20 years since the district was designated in 2008. It covers a total of 2.79 million square meters and is planned for about 17,700 households and a planned population of about 49,500 people (up to 54,000), serving as a core residential area in western Pyeongtaek. The project is being developed as a residential area supporting Pyeongtaek Port and the Poseung and Hyeondeok National Industrial Complexes, and is considered the largest among private land readjustment urban development projects.
Pushed forward in earnest after approval of the land readjustment plan in 2018, the project saw the first apartment move-ins in Aug. last year, and about 4,450 households have moved in to date. In addition, about 3,000 to 4,000 more households are scheduled to move in, including Seohee Starhills Central Park Phase 1 (1,554 households) in July, with large-scale move-ins of 7,000 to 8,000 households expected within the year.
Under the land readjustment method, land owners form an association, provide part of their land as sites for roads, parks, and other public facilities, and receive the remainder back as land after development. Unlike the method in which the public sector expropriates land, the association bears the project costs and secures revenue through increases in land value.
The problem is that, unlike the pace of apartment occupancy, development of individual lots such as commercial and quasi-residential land has been delayed, meaning that basic living infrastructure like shopping centers, hospitals, and private academies has effectively not taken shape. There is also criticism that retail space within the complexes is largely filled with real estate brokerages, limiting practical daily convenience functions.
Residents are complaining about daily inconveniences. One resident said, "If you want to do anything, you have to go to Anjeong-eup or the old downtown of Pyeongtaek, and it's even harder to get around without a car," adding, "If you take a bus into downtown Pyeongtaek, it takes about an hour. There's still nothing here, so everything is inconvenient."
Another resident said, "Some grocery-type stores have recently opened in the apartment complex shopping areas, but for daily necessities or hospital visits, you still have to go into downtown Pyeongtaek or toward Godeok," adding, "In many cases, you have to travel at least 50 minutes." The resident went on, "When we moved in, we were told the infrastructure would be coming soon, so this is absurd." According to the association, there was even a case where a resident's child had a high fever and, with no hospital available, they had no choice but to call 119.
This situation stems from a conflict between Pyeongtaek City and the association over a shortfall in project costs. According to the association, an external accounting firm's review found a shortfall of about 304 billion won in project costs, with a key cause being the surge in wide-area transportation charges from 67 billion won to 220 billion won due to the impact of COVID-19.
The association argues that, under the Urban Development Act's clause on "use permits before completion," it is possible to develop individual lots. It also explained that if one of the two high school sites is reduced and converted to a multi-family housing site for sale, it could secure the funds needed to cover the shortfall.
An official with the development association said, "Pyeongtaek City is prioritizing securing funds for external wide-area transportation over internal living infrastructure, which is delaying the development of individual lots," adding, "The city is asking association members to prepay the shortfall in project costs and says it will grant permits on that premise."
Pyeongtaek City, on the other hand, maintains that under the structure of urban development projects, the project costs must be borne by the association as the project implementer. Since an external review has confirmed a shortfall in project costs, it is difficult to allow development of individual lots without resolving it. To cover the shortfall, the city believes association members should adjust part of the land they receive through readjustment or secure funds through additional contributions, and that procedures to amend the land readjustment plan reflecting this should come first.
A Pyeongtaek City official said, "Use permits before completion can be reviewed if conditions are met, and we have asked the association for specific implementation plans regarding partial prepayment of the shortfall, a plan to pay the balance, and the impact on adjacent land when amending the land readjustment plan," adding, "Because land readjustment–type urban development projects are structured so that the association bears the project costs, it is difficult to allow development of individual lots without such remedies in place."