'Baeksa Village' Transformed After 60 Years... Into a Luxury Complex Embracing Bulamsan

Baeksa Village, once a representative hillside neighborhood of Seoul, is finally being redeveloped. Located at the foot of Bulamsan in Nowon-gu, Baeksa Village is entering the maintenance project 16 years after redevelopment was first actively pursued. The relocation area for evictees is being transformed into an 'eco-friendly residential complex' after 60 years.

■ Demolition Begins... Completion Targeted for 2029

Seoul City announced on the 29th that it plans to create a nature-friendly residential complex with a total of 3178 households in 26 buildings ranging from 4 basement floors to 35 above-ground floors in Baeksa Village. This plan is significant in that it improves business feasibility by securing an additional 741 households from the existing 2437 households, stabilizes housing supply, and expands housing opportunities for low-income residents. Additionally, the plan resolved the sense of alienation among residents by introducing 'social mix' to the previously separated sale and rental complexes.

A diverse urban environment will be created, and a distinctive complex design will be applied. The plan prioritizes resident safety with a pedestrian environment designed with heights and skyline plans that match the natural environment of Bulamsan, and vehicle traffic plans for integrated underground parking.

To improve resident convenience and accessibility, nature-friendly public pedestrian paths within the complex considering the Bulamsan landscape, and high-quality community facilities centered on open spaces have been secured.

Baeksa Village is eagerly anticipating new changes. Demolition officially began on the 8th. Measures will be prepared for residents who have not yet relocated to accelerate the project. Construction is set to begin in the second half of this year, with completion targeted for the first half of 2029. The plan is to create one of the country's leading 'luxury eco-friendly residential complexes'.

Kim Seong-bo, Deputy Mayor of Seoul City, said, "Thanks to the residents who did not give up and trusted Seoul City even as the Baeksa Village redevelopment project went through years of trial and error, we were able to prepare a natural-friendly residential complex plan that all residents wanted," adding, "Seoul City will continue to do its best to ensure that the Baeksa Village redevelopment project is completed as soon as possible."

■ Established as a Settlement for Evictees 60 Years Ago

The history of Baeksa Village dates back 60 years to the 1960s. As industrialization led to a rapid increase in Seoul's population and pressure for urban development grew, development was carried out on unauthorized settlements such as along Cheonggyecheon, a representative unauthorized settlement in Seoul. The government relocated evictees to the border areas of Seoul and Gyeonggi-do, mostly on idle national and public land hillsides.

Baeksa Village also emerged at that time. The name 'Baeksa (104) Village' was given because the past address was around San 104. In the early 1960s, the living conditions in Baeksa Village were very poor. Not only was there no electricity, but there was also a chronic water shortage, and basic infrastructure was lacking, with frequent outbreaks of infectious diseases. In the 1980s, conditions gradually improved with the provision of communal water facilities in unauthorized housing areas.

In the 1990s, other relocation settlements were redeveloped into apartment complexes, but Baeksa Village was excluded due to being a 'development restricted area'. In 2008, the foundation for redevelopment was finally laid when the development restriction was lifted through legislation.

Although a maintenance plan was established in 2009, the project was abandoned by the project operator, Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH Corporation), in 2016 due to deteriorating business conditions. After many twists and turns, Seoul Housing and Communities Corporation (SH Corporation) stepped in in 2017, and the stalled project regained momentum. Ultimately, in March of last year, more than 95% of the attendees at the general meeting of landowners and others overwhelmingly agreed to the rapid promotion of the integrated maintenance plan change.

About a year later, in April of this year, Seoul City finalized the redevelopment maintenance plan (draft). It was 16 years after the designation of the Baeksa Village redevelopment maintenance area in 2009. In the integrated review of the maintenance project, Seoul City achieved 'conditional approval' for the newly established Baeksa Village maintenance plan (draft), which integrated the previously separated sale and rental housing sites. The Baeksa Village redevelopment project was made possible by the earnest desire of local residents for rapid project promotion, the efforts of the project operator, and the support of Seoul City.


ronia@fnnews.com Lee Seol-young Reporter