In the Seoripul Districts 1 and 2 around Umyeon-dong, Seocho-gu, Seoul, residents' opposition to designating a public housing district is growing. Legal battles and collective civil petitions are simultaneously intensifying over a plan to lift the development-restricted area (green belt) and supply 20,000 public dwellings.
According to the real estate industry on the 2nd, residents of Saejeong-i Village filed a lawsuit to cancel the designation of the Seoripul District 1 public housing district. The hearing date was initially that day but was postponed to Sept. 10. The Seoul Administrative Court issued an order to prepare clarification to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, pushing back the hearing date. An order to prepare clarification is a procedure in which the court requires the parties to the lawsuit to specifically organize unclear parts such as the purpose and cause of the claim and the facts, and to submit supplementary materials.
The Saejeong-i Village Residents' Countermeasure Committee said, "If the government intends to incorporate an existing settlement village within a development-restricted area into a public housing district, it should not simply cite the need for housing supply, but explain why it was necessary to include that village, and whether other alternatives such as preservation or boundary adjustments were sufficiently reviewed."
Seoripul District 2 also made clear its opposition to the supply. Residents of Songdong Village and Sikyuchon in Seoripul District 2 visited the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport (MOLIT) the previous day and submitted applications for preservation. Umyeon-dong Catholic Church and 96% of householders agreed to preservation. Signatures from 9,519 people, including priests and parishioners from 11 churches in the Catholic 12th district who expressed opposition to unilateral expropriation, were submitted together.
Residents of Seoripul District 2 are asking the government to review alternatives that can achieve the dwelling supply target while preserving the already formed settlements, religious facilities and living infrastructure.
Earlier, the government set a goal to supply 20,000 multifamily dwellings in the Seoripul district. To that end, it said it would lift the green belt in Seoripul Districts 1 and 2 in Nov. 2024 and begin construction between late 2028 and 2029.