The project to build 700 public dwellings on the former Korean Educational Development Institute (KEDI) site in Seocho District, Seoul, which had been vacant for nearly 10 years, has entered the environmental review process. Only about one-third of the entire project site will be used as residential land, with the rest developed as infrastructure such as parks, green spaces and roads.
According to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport and Korea Land & Housing Corporation (LH) on the 3rd, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport (MOLIT) is releasing a draft of the "Seoul Yangjae public housing district strategic environmental impact assessment" and receiving resident feedback from on the 2nd to Nov. 2. At 2 p.m. on the 16th, a resident briefing session will be held at the aT Center in Yangjae-dong, Seocho District, Seoul.
The Seoul Yangjae public housing district is a project to supply about 700 dwellings on 60,903 square meters around the former Korean Educational Development Institute (KEDI) site in Umyeon-dong, Seocho District. It is one of the underused inner-Seoul land development projects the government released in the Sept. 7 housing supply measures last year.
Korean Educational Development Institute (KEDI) transferred to Chungbuk Innovation City in 2017. Since then, the site had remained vacant for a long period without a clear plan for use. The government selected the location as underused land where public dwellings could be supplied in the Gangnam area, and LH proposed designating it as a public housing district to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport (MOLIT) in Oct. last year.
Afterward, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport (MOLIT) heard resident opinions on the designation of the public housing district in June. In July, after a review by the environmental impact assessment council, it released the assessment items, and last month it received the draft strategic environmental impact assessment. This public inspection is a procedure to reflect the opinions of residents and related agencies in the main environmental assessment.
According to the draft environmental assessment, residential land accounts for 19,921 square meters, or 32.7%, of the entire project site. The remaining land is planned to be developed with infrastructure such as parks, green spaces and roads. Nearby Umyeon housing site district has living infrastructure in place, and Yangjae Citizen's Forest Station and Yangjae Station are about 1.5 km and 2 km away, respectively.
Part of the project site includes a biotope grade-1 area with high ecological conservation value. A biotope refers to a habitat space where plants and animals live together. The Seoul city government surveys habitat functions, rarity and vegetation structure and assigns grades based on ecological value. The biotope grade-1 area could act as a variable in the project schedule during consultations with related agencies. If demands for ecological conservation are high, district boundaries or the land use plan may be adjusted.
The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport (MOLIT) and LH plan to prepare the final strategic environmental impact assessment within this year by reflecting opinions submitted through the public inspection and briefing session, and then consult with related agencies such as the Ministry of Climate, Energy and Environment. After that, they aim to start construction in the first half of 2028 and complete the project by 2031 through the procedures of designating the public housing district and establishing and approving the district plan.
Along with the Seoul Yangjae public housing district, other projects to develop underused inner-city land included in the Sept. 7 measures are also being promoted. The volume of supply on underused inner-Seoul land the government released at the time is about 4,000 dwellings.
The Seonggyungwan University baseball field site in Dobong District expanded its supply plan from 1,800 to 2,100 dwellings. It is planned to include 1,709 public presale dwellings and 391 integrated public rental dwellings. In May, a consortium of Hyundai Engineering & Construction, Jungheung Construction and Taeyoung E&C was selected as the preferred bidder for the private-participation public housing project, and groundbreaking is targeted for June next year.
Meanwhile, the solicitation of private operators for the Wirye business-use land in Songpa District, which is slated to supply about 999 dwellings, was delayed as confirmation of the project plan and the purchase of land owned by the Ministry of National Defense were pushed back. LH plans to proceed with the solicitation within this year.
A total of 558 dwellings are planned to be supplied on the relocation sites of Gangseo District Office's Gayang-dong annex, the Gangseo District Council and the Gangseo District Public Health Center. Land acquisition and consultations with related agencies are underway, with a goal of groundbreaking in 2028.