[단독] Seoul to lift the 35th floor A 45-story apartment building on the banks of the Han River

35-story apartments along the Han River. [연합뉴스]

The Seoul Metropolitan Government lifts the ’35 floor rule’, which limits the maximum number of floors in apartments in general residential areas to 35 floors. Despite pressure on supply measures, the position changed from half a year ago when the line was drawn that there was no plan to ease the floor restrictions.

This is expected to increase the number of complexes using the maximum floor area ratio of 500% in general residential areas in Seoul, including the Han River. In the meantime, the perception that even if the floor area ratio was increased, it was useless if the number of floors was the same. This is because you can only build an apartment complex that is dense like a matchbox. Therefore, if the floor area ratio and the floor number restrictions are eased at the same time, the urban supply that the government is focusing on is expected to gain momentum.

According to the Seoul Metropolitan Government and Seoul City Council on the 26th, the city changed its course in the direction of easing the 35-floor rule, the representative floor number regulation of Seoul, in accordance with the establishment of the 2040 Basic Urban Plan (2040 Seoul Plan) scheduled for the year-end.

The urban master plan of Seoul is a plan that guides the establishment of future urban management plans, and the mayor is required to review the feasibility every five years and maintain it. The city of Seoul will carry out related research services by the end of this year to revise the existing 2030 Seoul Plan.

The ’35 floor rule’ specified in the 2030 Seoul Plan is a regulation that prohibits building more than 35 floors for purely residential buildings, regardless of the usage area.

The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport mentioned the easing of floor area ratio regulations when announcing the ‘8·4 supply measures’ last year, but the city drew a line that “there is no plan to ease the rule of the 35th floor” at the time. It was pointed out that this was why there was a difference between the government and the government.

Seoul’s position has completely changed in half a year. The rule of the 35th floor is designed to fit the floor area ratio of 300% (the legal upper limit), so if the floor area ratio can be higher than 300%, it is necessary to reconsider the rule of the 35th floor.

“Isn’t there been a high-density dwelling after the August 4 measures last year?” Said.

He added, “We will carry out the service until the end of this year for the reorganization of the 2040 urban master plan, and the details of the floor water regulation deregulation will be known only after the service is finished.”

Related organizations, such as the Seoul City Council, believe that there is a high possibility that the city will ease up to 40-45 floors. City Councilman Kim Jong-moo said, “If you think about the next reconstruction, about 40 to 45 floors are suitable,” he said. “If you go from the 35th to the 40th floor, you can use approximately 50% more of the floor area ratio.”

Director Lee Jeong-hwa emphasized last year that “the 35th floor rule does not have any restrictions in utilizing the legal upper floor area ratio of 300%,” and “there is no inventory plan for the 35th floor rule for residential areas.”

2030 Seoul Basic Urban Plan Excerpt[사진 = 서울시]

Major reconstruction complexes in Gangnam, including the Han River, are expected to benefit from the change in Seoul’s position. The number of households is expected to increase drastically, and business feasibility is expected to improve significantly. In the case of Eunma, Daechi-dong, when the floor area ratio rises to 500%, the total number of households increases by about three times.

It seems that the reason the Seoul city changed its position is that the current system of use zones is constantly changing. In October of last year, councilor Ko Byeong-guk proposed a revised bill of urban planning ordinances in Seoul, with the main idea of ​​subdividing sub-residential areas. The proposal was deliberated by the Urban Planning Management Committee of the Seoul City Council, but was withheld because it needed more detail. Judging will resume in February.

Seoul City plans to continue subdividing usage areas starting with semi-residential areas. Currently, it is a big trunk that divides up to 19 areas for use with 11 individuals. In August of last year, the National Territorial Planning and Utilization Act (National Territory Planning Act) was amended, laying the groundwork for the Seoul Metropolitan Government to reorganize its use area.

Even now, floor area ratios exceeding 300% in general residential areas are not impossible. Although the legal upper limit is 300%, the floor area ratio can be reduced by 400~500% if a district unit plan is established under the condition of accepting donations for a part of the floor area ratio, which increases according to Article 46 of the Enforcement Decree of the National Land Planning Act.

For this reason, some analyzes that the Seoul Metropolitan Government is not able to overcome the continued pressure on the housing supply and thus eases the number of floors. Since the inauguration of the Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Byun Chang-heum, the government has continuously emphasized the need to expand supply. This is a distinctly different course from the days of former Minister Kim Hyun-mi.