A 1,480-square-meter specialty garden will take shape along the streetscape around Dongdaemun Design Plaza by October, turning traffic islands and green strips into 'attraction gardens' and 'module gardens'
Seoul's Jung-gu will create a specialty garden along the streetscape around Dongdaemun Design Plaza by October.
Spanning 1,480 square meters, the project will introduce garden spaces and rest facilities throughout the area, making it a more comfortable destination for residents and tourists alike.
The area around DDP draws heavy foot traffic but has long been difficult to enjoy at a leisurely pace, with frequent vehicle congestion and few places to rest.
In response, the district aims to reconnect fragmented green pedestrian corridors and realize a "five-minute garden city" concept — bringing nature within easy reach of everyday life.
The centerpiece of the project is the creation of "attraction gardens," which use diverse plantings to enhance the streetscape, and the installation of "module gardens" — compact rest spaces tailored to the width of existing sidewalks.
The Majang-ro intersection traffic island will be the first to be redesigned as an attraction garden. It will be planted with tree species and flowering plants chosen for their strong fine-dust reduction properties while keeping drivers' sightlines clear.
The green strips in front of Goodmorning City, Doota Mall and Maxstyle will also be remade as attraction gardens. Dead trees will be removed and replaced with lilacs, hydrangeas and spirea to bring new vitality to the streetscape.
Along the Euljiro pedestrian walkway stretching from Hullyeonwon Park to the Dongdaemun History & Culture Park intersection, and along the Jangchungdan-ro walkway in front of Doota Mall and Maxstyle, module gardens combining planters and benches will be installed. The facilities will be positioned to minimize interference with pedestrian flow and bicycle lanes, so passersby can stop and rest at any point along the route.
Solar-powered lighting will also be installed in the garden sections in front of Doota Mall and Maxstyle, providing nighttime visitors to the DDP area with a safe and distinctive streetscape experience.
Jung-gu District Mayor Kim Gil-sung said the DDP area is "one of Seoul's most iconic destinations, visited by countless tourists from home and abroad," adding that the district would "do its utmost to complete construction swiftly and safely, so that everyone can walk, rest and savor the ease of a city worth lingering in."
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