"Let's preserve Yongsan Park, the lungs of Seoul."
At 6:30 p.m. on the 19th, a person in their 70s whom we met at the playground in front of the main gate of the Children's Garden in Yongsan District, Seoul, held up a paper with a message calling for the preservation of Yongsan Park. The person, speaking almost as if rebuking the reporter, said, "Does it make sense to build a concrete building on the last remaining green space in the heart of downtown Seoul?"
At the playground in front of the Yongsan Children's Garden that day, citizens gathered to oppose the Lee Jae-myung government's plan to push ahead with supplying rental dwellings in Yongsan Park. People in their 30s who had rushed over right after work, young couples pushing strollers with their children, and people in their 70s who said they had lived in Yongsan for nearly 50 years made for a diverse mix across generations and genders.
At the park entrance, a signature drive was also underway opposing the government's plan to develop Yongsan Park to supply dwellings. Participants expressed their opposition by writing down their names, addresses and contact information. There were people not only from Seoul but also from Daejeon.
Roughly 70 sheets of A4 paper were filled with signatures opposing the plan. Considering that more than 20 people sign each sheet, that amounts to more than 1,400 people signing in opposition.
Many of those at the rally held placards. The placards read, "Green spaces in the city are life" and "Yongsan Park is a future heritage," among other messages.
A person surnamed Song (70), who said they have lived in Yongsan for 45 years, said, "Yongsan Park is a green space that must exist until Korea disappears," and added, "The government building rental dwellings in Yongsan Park is an act of driving a 'stake.'" Song continued, "If they want to increase real estate supply, they can raise floor area ratios in other parts of Seoul and proceed with reconstruction and redevelopment."
A person surnamed Choi (39), who visited Yongsan Park with a child just out of daycare, said, "They say they will build a concrete building on park land where children should be running around, and I already feel suffocated."
In front of this garden, artificial flower arrangements bearing phrases opposing park development began to be placed a few weeks ago. There are now more than 100. The ribbons on the arrangements carried messages such as "Don't take away the children's garden" and "An act of stealing the rights of future generations."
◇ Heat levels vary by district green space area
With a heat wave above 40 degrees observed in Seoul this summer, calls are growing to reexamine the role of urban green spaces.
According to the Korea Meteorological Administration, Seoul's average temperature from Aug. 1 to 13 reached 30.2 degrees. On 10 of the 13 days, the daytime high was 34 degrees or higher. In particular, at 40.2 degrees, a reading was recorded on the afternoon of the 7th at the automatic weather station (AWS) in Nowon District, Seoul. It was the first time in eight years that 40 degrees or higher was recorded at a Seoul observation point since Aug. 1, 2018.
The problem is that even within Seoul, the heat citizens actually experience is not the same. Depending on whether an area is packed with roads and buildings or close to trees and parks, midday temperatures vary noticeably.
An analysis of Seoul's 25 districts using GIS and satellite data by Greenpeace's East Asia office in Seoul in June found that Seocho District, with the largest green area, had 19.6 square kilometers, while Dongdaemun District, with the smallest, had 1.3 square kilometers—a difference of more than 15 times. In terms of green area per capita, the disparity between districts widened to as much as 20 times.
This difference also translated into temperature gaps. According to Greenpeace's 2024 Satellite Data Analytics, Dongdaemun District's average land surface temperature was 43.0 degrees, while Seocho District's was 37.8 degrees, 5.2 degrees lower. The analysis also observed a correlation that for every 1 square kilometer increase in green area, land surface temperature decreased by about 0.23 to 0.25 degrees.
The National Institute of Forest Science reached similar conclusions. In the five districts with the highest proportion of urban forest area, the average land surface temperature was 34.9 to 36.2 degrees. In contrast, the five districts with the lowest proportion of urban forest area recorded 36.9 to 39.1 degrees. The gap between each district's lowest and highest land surface temperatures was 4.2 degrees.
Asphalt and concrete absorb solar energy and re-emit it as radiant heat. By contrast, tree canopies block direct sunlight and radiant heat, and transpiration from leaves absorbs surrounding heat. Even within a park, waterfront areas are cooler at midday than plazas because shade, vegetation and moisture work together.
◇ Lee government dwelling supply plan runs counter to Seoul City's park policy
Are Seoul's green spaces sufficient amid the climate crisis? Compared with other major cities abroad, Seoul's green space is relatively lacking. According to the city of Seoul, as of 2024, the per capita park area in Seoul is 18.04 square meters. That exceeds Beijing, China (15.7 square meters), and New York, United States (14.7 square meters). On these figures alone, it might appear that green space is sufficient.
However, when compared by "walkable neighborhood parks" that citizens can reach on foot, Seoul's per capita park area shrinks to 5.78 square meters. Excluding the mountainous outer areas in the north and south of Seoul, there is a shortage of parks that citizens can walk to.
To address the lack of green space in daily life, Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon has pursued the "5-minute garden city" policy since 2024. Rather than concentrating green space in a few large parks, the idea is to create gardens along streets, on idle land, along rivers and inside and outside residential areas so that anyone can experience gardens anywhere.
While expansion of green space in the city center is needed as part of responding to the climate crisis, the central government has recently been considering ways to supply dwellings on large green areas such as the greenbelts in Seoul and the greater capital area and Yongsan Park.
Minister Kim Yun-duk of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport said at a press briefing marking the first anniversary of taking office on the 14th that the government is reviewing dwelling supply plans with the entire Yongsan Park in play. On the 17th, it emerged that the government is reviewing a plan to create a large rental dwelling complex for young people on the site of the Yongsan Children's Garden. A bill to amend the Special Act on the Creation of Yongsan Park to ease green space standards in the complex facilities zone within Yongsan Park and expand dwelling supply is also being discussed in the National Assembly, led by the ruling party.
In relation to this, Mayor Oh Se-hoon said at a People Power Party Seoul chapter forum at the National Assembly on the morning of the 19th, "We must not try to cover up the failure to rein in home prices with Yongsan Park," adding, "Overturning the principles of law that the state has upheld for the sake of immediate results and allowing future generations to damage our asset undermines trust in state affairs on its own."
He added, "Even if additional dwelling supply is needed immediately, exhausting what future generations should enjoy ultimately sacrifices future generations' lives," and "Whatever happens, Yongsan Park must be protected."