The National Agency for Administrative City Construction said it will begin full-scale architectural design for the construction of the presidential Sejong office. The target move-in is August 2029.
The agency said on the 22nd that it has completed the design competition for the presidential Sejong office and gathered opinions from the public and experts, and will now ramp up the architectural design.
In the design competition for the presidential Sejong office construction project, which has been underway since January, "A national symbol space realized with 'chae and madang,' a landscape of wisdom" by the HAAN Architects consortium (Haeahn, Tomoon, UnSangDong Architects) was selected as the final winner. The winner will carry out the basic and detailed design for the presidential Sejong office construction project.
According to the design competition jury, the winning entry earned high marks for its spatial composition aligned with the natural terrain axis like Changdeokgung, realization of a Korean landscape through the traditional placement of "chae and madang," close adjacency of the president and senior staff, and a three-dimensional circulation plan that uses terrain level differences.
The agency gathered opinions from the public and experts on the design direction for the presidential Sejong office. Some noted that a modern building should reflect traditional Korean aesthetics and, embodying the spirit of the times such as de-authoritarianism and communication with the public, should inherit the Blue House from a future-oriented perspective.
In the follow-up design phase, the agency plans to operate a "special advisory council for the presidential Sejong office" composed of experts across culture, architecture, and history, and to refine the design through continued public input.
Starting with this design kickoff, the agency will push the project with a goal of completing design and breaking ground in 2027, and moving in by August 2029.
Kang Ju-yeop, head of the National Agency for Administrative City Construction, said, "We will actively communicate with the public and experts and do our best so that the presidential Sejong office can be built as a landmark befitting the nation's stature and instilling pride in the public."