Dongjak-gu District Mayor Ryu Sam-young (front row, left) speaks at the 203rd regular meeting of the Seoul Metropolitan District Mayors' Council, held at Seoul City Hall on Wednesday. [Dongjak-gu]
Dongjak-gu District Mayor Ryu Sam-young (front row, left) speaks at the 203rd regular meeting of the Seoul Metropolitan District Mayors' Council, held at Seoul City Hall on Wednesday. [Dongjak-gu]

Dongjak-gu has formally proposed that the Seoul Metropolitan Government transfer to individual district offices the authority to designate improvement zones for small-scale urban renewal projects — including permitting powers — in a bid to accelerate redevelopment and reconstruction work.

Democratic Party-affiliated district mayors in Seoul have consistently raised the same demand since the ninth round of elected local governments took office. Guro-gu District Mayor Jang In-hong and Gwanak-gu District Mayor Park Jun-hee made the same call in separate interviews last month. Dongjak-gu District Mayor Ryu Sam-young is also a Democratic Party member.

According to Dongjak-gu, Ryu formally submitted a proposal titled "Transfer of district authority over improvement zone designation and modification" as an agenda item at the 203rd regular meeting of the Seoul Metropolitan District Mayors' Council, held at Seoul City Hall on Wednesday.

The proposal calls for delegating to district offices the power to designate project zones for small-scale renewal projects involving fewer than 500 households, and for expanding the scope of minor modifications that districts can handle independently to less than 20 percent.

Under current law, improvement zone designation falls under the Seoul Metropolitan Government's jurisdiction pursuant to Article 8 of the Act on the Maintenance and Improvement of Urban Areas and Dwelling Conditions for Residents. Minor modifications to improvement zones that districts could otherwise handle — such as changes to floor area ratios and building coverage ratios — are capped at 10 percent. As demand for redevelopment and reconstruction grows, including through the city's fast-track integrated planning scheme, district offices struggle to respond quickly to residents' needs, the district said.

"Most of the authority over urban renewal projects is currently concentrated at the central or metropolitan level," a district official said. "The intent is that district offices, which best understand conditions on the ground and what residents need, should be able to designate improvement zones directly from the earliest stages of a project, reflecting the characteristics of each area."

The Seoul Metropolitan District Mayors' Council agreed at the meeting to respond proactively to the proposal for expanded district authority, including by forming a task force to pursue meaningful changes such as amendments to relevant laws, the district said. Dongjak-gu expects that transferring the authority to district offices would reduce administrative procedures and shorten project timelines while also improving local administrative responsiveness.


ken@heraldcorp.com