[Herald Business = Park Jong-il, senior reporter] Seoul's Seongdong-gu district is gearing up to fully launch the "Redevelopment and Reconstruction Rapid Management Task Force," which District Mayor Yu Bo-hwa established as the first official act of the ninth elected-term administration.
The task force — formally named the Redevelopment and Reconstruction Rapid Management Task Force — serves as an integrated control tower overseeing major urban renewal projects in Seongdong-gu, including redevelopment, reconstruction and remodeling initiatives. It provides one-stop support covering tailored consulting for individual project sites, coordination among relevant departments, permit procedure assistance, external expert advisory services and resident dispute mediation, with the aim of proactively removing factors that delay urban renewal projects.
To ensure stable early operations and secure the expertise and execution capacity the task force requires, the district has appointed Yu Ok-hyeon, a 30-year veteran in architecture and urban renewal, as the new head of the Urban Management Bureau. Yu will concurrently serve as head of the task force.
Yu entered public service in 1995 and has since held key posts in housing, New Town policy and urban renewal across the Seoul Metropolitan Government and four autonomous districts. He is regarded as a veteran expert who bridges policy and field operations, with a practical track record connecting Seoul's housing policy formulation to on-the-ground renewal projects and an established network of interagency relationships.
The district is currently running a recruitment process to hire an outside expert to lead the task force on a permanent basis. Until that process concludes, Yu will hold both the Urban Management Bureau director post and the task force leadership role simultaneously, minimizing any organizational gap and ensuring major renewal projects are managed without disruption from the outset.
With major redevelopment and reconstruction projects in Seongdong-gu — including the Seongsu Strategic Renewal Zone — now entering full implementation, the district expects Yu's extensive field experience and deep understanding of Seoul's housing policy to play a key role in accelerating those projects and raising their quality.
In parallel, Seongdong-gu has formally begun drawing up a renewal plan for Haengdang Zone 8, centered on the area around 300-1 Haengdang-dong, one of the task force's priority management targets. The zone was conditionally selected as a candidate site for Seoul's fast-track integrated planning housing redevelopment project on Dec. 16, 2025. After the district swiftly carried out the required steps — including a resident opinion survey and a public briefing — it was officially confirmed as a candidate site on May 18.
To allow residents to participate directly in the planning process, the district began recruiting a resident participation group on June 22 and issued a tender notice on Monday for a contractor to draw up the renewal plan and designate the renewal zone. The move comes ahead of a similar tender notice that Seoul City has signaled it will issue later this month for its own architectural component of the renewal plan.
The task force will provide intensive, stage-by-stage management of Haengdang Zone 8, offering integrated support covering interdepartmental coordination, liaison with the Seoul Metropolitan Government and resident opinion gathering.
"The Rapid Management Task Force is the first concrete initiative of the ninth elected-term administration — a direct effort by the district to coordinate and support renewal projects that have been delayed by complex procedures and resident conflicts," District Mayor Yu Bo-hwa said. "We will deliver swift, efficient renewal administration that residents can feel, led by officials with the expertise and field experience to make it happen."
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