The Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH) has commenced demolition at the Banghak Station urban complex in the Dobong District of Seoul. This marks the first demolition in the urban public housing complex project, which has been underway for five years, and is reported to be more than eight years ahead of private redevelopment efforts.
On September 21, LH announced that it has begun demolition at the Banghak Station complex, the fastest-moving site among the urban complex project areas, just five years after its designation as a candidate site.
The urban complex project is a housing supply initiative led by public entities like LH in aging urban areas where private redevelopment is challenging. The project aims to enhance feasibility through incentives for floor area ratio and streamline complex approval processes to expedite the supply of new housing.
The Banghak Station and Ssangmun Station eastern districts were initiated in 2021, with priority sales to original residents completed last year. The Banghak Station complex is the first among the urban complex projects in Seoul to enter the demolition phase.
Considering that private redevelopment projects in Seoul typically take an average of 14 years and six months from candidate selection to construction, LH stated that the Banghak Station project is progressing more than eight years faster.
Six urban complex districts in Seoul, totaling 7,755 housing units, are also moving forward. With compensation procedures completed for the Banghak and Ssangmun eastern districts, resident relocation and demolition will proceed simultaneously, with construction expected to begin in the first half of 2027.
Compensation contracts for two areas near Yeonsinnae Station and the western side of Ssangmun Station will start in October, while contracts for the Shin-gil 2 and Jungnang 4 districts will begin in November. LH plans to initiate construction on these four districts by 2028.
The supply scale for each district includes 420 units at Banghak Station, 639 at Ssangmun eastern, 392 at Yeonsinnae, 1,404 at Ssangmun western, 1,332 at Shin-gil 2, and 3,568 at Jungnang 4. Construction companies involved include Doosan Construction for Banghak and Ssangmun eastern, Kumho Construction for Yeonsinnae, Daebo Construction for Ssangmun western, and GS Construction and POSCO E&C for Shin-gil 2, and DL E&C and Samsung C&T for Jungnang 4.
The Banghak Station complex will cover an area of 8,428.8 square meters, featuring four underground levels and 39 above-ground floors, with a total of 420 units. The planned housing types include 263 public sales units, 84 profit-sharing units, and 73 public rental units, with sizes ranging from 26 to 84 square meters. The parking capacity will accommodate 601 vehicles, including those for commercial use.
To accelerate the urban complex project, LH has deployed a total of 244 dedicated personnel to the Special Headquarters for the Metropolitan Area Maintenance Project. This team will focus on key areas such as approvals, compensation, relocation, and demolition, utilizing skilled personnel from its headquarters, non-metropolitan regions, new hires from the first half of this year, and temporary specialists.
On the same day, LH held a groundbreaking ceremony for the first demolition in the urban complex project at the Banghak Station site. The event was attended by LH President Lee Seong-hoon, lawmakers Oh Gi-hyeong, Kim Young-bae, and Kim Nam-geun, along with over 100 representatives from the local community.
The initiation of the first demolition in the urban complex project is expected to serve as a test of whether public-led redevelopment can accelerate housing supply in Seoul.
Lee Seong-hoon, President of LH, expressed optimism, stating, "As the urban complex projects in the Seoul area are set to begin construction one after another in the first half of next year, I expect this will lead to tangible effects in urban housing supply that the public can feel. Starting with the Banghak Station area, we will closely monitor the situation in each district and expedite the phased schedule as much as possible."
* This article has been translated by AI.
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