Entertainment firms to receive up to 200% floor-area ratio incentive; hotels up to 240%

New AI convergence college, cardiovascular center also planned

A view of the Euljiro 6-ga area, site of the DDP 1, 2 and 3 urban renewal redevelopment zones. [Naver Street View]
A view of the Euljiro 6-ga area, site of the DDP 1, 2 and 3 urban renewal redevelopment zones. [Naver Street View]

The area around Seoul's Dongdaemun Design Plaza is set to be transformed into a K-culture hub anchored by entertainment companies, performance venues and tourist hotels. Yonsei University's Sinchon campus will also see the construction of an innovation complex housing an AI convergence college and a cardiovascular specialty clinic, along with a new medical school building.

The Seoul Metropolitan Government said Wednesday it approved, with modifications, a plan to designate redevelopment zones and set improvement guidelines for the DDP 1, 2 and 3 urban renewal projects at its 15th Urban Planning Committee meeting.

The redevelopment sites cover the Euljiro 6-ga area, the vicinity of Sindang-dong 773 and the area around Euljiro 299. Once the heart of Dongdaemun's fashion industry, the district has seen its commercial vitality erode under pressure from the growth of online shopping and the advance of Chinese e-commerce platforms. The city said vacancy rates at some fashion arcades in the area have exceeded 70 percent.

The city plans to turn the DDP area into a K-culture hub through private-led redevelopment, concentrating entertainment industry tenants alongside tourism and cultural facilities. Developers that bring in entertainment companies will receive a floor-area ratio incentive of up to 200 percent, with an additional allowance of up to 50 percent available for securing beauty or fashion tenants.

Tourist hotels and K-content experience facilities will also be expanded. Developers introducing three-star or higher tourist hotels will receive incentives of up to 150 percent of the permitted floor-area ratio or up to 240 percent of the maximum floor-area ratio, depending on scale. Tourist information centers and luggage storage facilities will qualify for incentives of up to 100 percent, as will K-content interactive entertainment facilities. Registered performance venues will be allowed an additional building height of up to 20 meters.

A 30-meter-wide east-west green corridor linking DDP to the Sewun district will also be created. It will connect to a north-south green axis running between Jongmyo Shrine and Namsan, expanding parks and open green spaces throughout the area. Along Jangchungdan-ro, the city will encourage the creation of nighttime streetscapes using media facades and similar installations. However, the improvement plan serves as a master plan setting the framework for future private redevelopment projects; the specifics of individual projects will be finalized through resident proposals and subsequent procedures.

A rendering of the new medical school building planned for Yonsei University's Sinchon campus. [Seoul Metropolitan Government]
A rendering of the new medical school building planned for Yonsei University's Sinchon campus. [Seoul Metropolitan Government]

Two large-scale education and medical facilities will also be built at Yonsei University's Sinchon campus, following approval by the same committee on Wednesday. On the site of the existing alumni hall, an innovation growth complex will rise to 17 above-ground floors with a total floor area of approximately 109,000 square meters. The building is planned to house an AI convergence college and a cardiac and cerebrovascular specialty clinic.

The innovation complex will also include about 13,000 square meters of community-benefit facilities, among them an AI career exploration and startup education program open to local youth, a community cultural classroom and a shared parking facility.

On the site of the existing Allen Hall and the Yonsei Medical Center administrative building, a new medical school will be constructed to 11 above-ground floors with a total floor area of approximately 97,000 square meters. The medical school is scheduled to break ground in June next year and be completed in June 2030, while the innovation complex is set to begin construction in March 2028 and be completed in August 2031.

"We plan to support urban planning that reshapes the DDP area into a mixed-use space combining a K-culture-centered tourism and cultural hub with green spaces, while helping Yonsei University expand its education, research and medical functions," a Seoul Metropolitan Government official said.


quq@heraldcorp.com