Developing Baeksa Village in the last month of Seoul… General sale of 750 households

On the 4th, the Seoul Metropolitan Government and Nowon-gu announced the approval of the project implementation plan for Baeksa Village (104 Junggye-dong, Nowon-gu, photo) and announced that the project will be carried out in earnest. It has been 12 years since it was designated as a housing redevelopment maintenance area in 2009. Baeksa Village, which originated from the place of residence, is a settlement inhabited by migrants arising from the demolition of Cheonggyecheon in the late 1960s.

The city plans to build 136 low-rise rental housing units (484 units) with 1 to 3 stories above the ground, along with 34 apartment buildings (1953 units) with the highest 20 floors, to supply a total of 2437 units. The low-rise residential area will be built on 4,832m2 west of Baeksa Village, and 9 architects will introduce different designs and develop them in the direction of preserving the original village. In order to prevent separation between complexes and to realize a social mix in which various social classes are mixed, residents’ common facilities were opened and the installation of barrier-blocking facilities at the complex was prohibited. A penthouse with a dedicated area of ​​190m2 will also be built in the apartment complex.

The Seoul Metropolitan Government is expected to release 750 households for general sales, excluding the sales for members (about 1,200 households) among 1953 households for sale. It is also an unusual business site that the ratio of leases provided by redevelopment is high, which is close to 20%.

‘Baeksa Village’ promoted a maintenance project when the restricted development zone designated in 1971 was lifted in 2008, but it has suffered difficulties due to the conflict between the business performance and residents. In 2016, the original project operator, Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH), gave up the project. In 2017, when the Seoul Housing and Urban Corporation (SH Corporation) was selected as the project operator, the project was normalized, but there was a state of decline due to differences of opinion among residents in terms of the number of floors in the design plan.

The city showed enthusiasm for the development of Baeksa Village enough to introduce a new type of business called’Residential Preservation Project’ by revising the ordinance. This project is to build rental housing in the redevelopment area to preserve the characteristics of the existing village, such as the topography, ground, and lifestyle, and to revitalize the village community. It is intended to preserve the traces of the past villages, resettle existing residents, and supply large-scale housing at the same time.

However, it has been criticized for breaking the floor limit applied to the private sector by allowing apartments up to 20 stories high on hilly terrain in order to increase the rate of resettlement of indigenous peoples.

Due to the redevelopment of Baeksa Village, a 20-story building is built on the ground at an altitude of 70m, which is about 10 stories (about 30m) higher than the neighboring tallest apartment built on 40m above ground. The Seoul Metropolitan Government regulates private construction plans built on 35m ground to 15 stories, but in Baeksa Village implemented by SH Corporation, apartments will be built on the ground at an altitude of 90m. In the process of deciding on such an improvement plan, some of the members of the City Planning Committee in Seoul resigned.

The city of Seoul is in a position that it has deliberated on the design proposal that proceeded to the international nomination contest according to the topography. An official from the Seoul Metropolitan Government said, “All the previously raised issues were resolved during the architectural deliberation process.” However, it is known that it is unlikely that the residential area preservation project, which was applied to Baeksa Village, was expanded to other places, assuming an increase in the floor area ratio.

According to the city, 394 households (about 66%) of the total 597 households in Baeksa Village have completed relocation. The city plans to start construction after selecting a contractor in the second half of this year and approving the management plan for next year. The target date for completion is in the first half of 2025.

The redevelopment of Baeksa Village is expected to proceed regardless of the public direct implementation maintenance project announced by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport in the 2·4 Real Estate Countermeasures.

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