Chuncheon Station Area Development Project Takes First Step Toward Implementation; Planning Study to Be Commissioned This Month

【Financial News, Chuncheon = Kim Gi-seop, reporter】With a total project cost of 474.3 billion won, the Chuncheon Station Area Development Project will create a mixed-use hub with residential, commercial and transit functions on 426,895 square meters around Chuncheon Station. Ten months after passing the preliminary feasibility study, it is beginning work on a development plan and moving into the implementation process, with completion targeted for 2031.
According to Chuncheon City on the 27th, the city will commission a study this month, under the direction of Chuncheon Urban Corporation, on designating the development zone and drawing up a development plan. This is the first step toward developing a concrete blueprint since the project passed the preliminary feasibility study hurdle last December. The city has set a schedule to begin the study this year, complete administrative procedures—including development-zone designation and approval of the implementation plan—from next year through 2028, start construction in 2028 and finish the project in 2031.
This is the first project nationwide to be carried out under the Act on the Development and Use of Station Areas. Korea National Railway, Chuncheon Urban Corporation and Gangwon Development Corporation will participate as project implementers. The area around Chuncheon Station will include residential, commercial, office and lodging facilities, as well as a transit center, parks and parking lots. Korea National Railway will pursue the transit center separately, following a competitive solicitation for private-sector operators.
The study will focus on drawing up a land-use plan for the area around Chuncheon Station and fleshing out a development vision that connects the old city center with Uiam Lake. The plan is to link the station-area development with the urban regeneration innovation district on the Camp Page site, returned in 2005, so that the two projects complement each other. It will also account for changes in the surrounding area resulting from the relocation of the Chuncheon Public Sewage Treatment Plant, with the aim of turning the Geunhwa-dong and Soyang-dong areas into an urban hub where residential, industrial, cultural and tourism functions come together.


Preserving the lakeside landscape and environment will be a priority around Uiam Lake. The city plans to keep views toward the lake open and consider building heights and layouts that blend with the natural environment, protecting the lake’s distinctive scenic value while creating a space with urban functions. It also aims to develop the area into a transportation and economic hub supporting a lifestyle zone within around 50 minutes of the capital region, by connecting it to major regional transport networks, including the Chuncheon–Sokcho East-West High-Speed Railway, the extension of Capital Region Great Train Express (GTX) Line B and the Second Gyeongchun National Highway.
To incorporate local conditions and residents’ daily lives from the outset, the city has been consulting with relevant agencies on having Chuncheon Urban Corporation take charge of drawing up the development plan. It recently coordinated the project’s direction with the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport (MOLIT) and Gangwon State, laying the groundwork for commissioning the study. In the process, Mayor Yook Dong-han visited central government agencies, including MOLIT, and the National Assembly several times to explain the need for the project. National Assembly member Heo Young, who was the lead sponsor of the Station Area Act, also lent his support.
Mayor Yook Dong-han said, “If the Geunhwa-dong and Soyang-dong areas are transformed, together with the Camp Page Urban Regeneration Innovation District, into places where residential life, culture and tourism thrive, the benefits will spread throughout the old city center’s commercial district.” He added, “While upholding the principle of not harming Uiam Lake’s scenery, I will meticulously oversee every step through completion so that Chuncheon can serve as a hub connecting the capital region and the East Sea coast, in step with the opening of the East-West High-Speed Railway and the Second Gyeongchun National Highway.”

[email protected] Kim Gi-seop Reporter