Yongsan District Mayor Kim Kyung-dae Strongly Opposes Housing Proposal for Yongsan Park…No Plan Has Been Finalized
As of 2026-08-16 at 11:12 Korea Standard Time, Kim Kyung-dae is the current mayor of Yongsan District, and the district has strongly opposed the government's consideration of housing development in Yongsan Park. However, the government has not finalized any plan to turn the entire park into a residential complex. The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport explained that it intends to examine the entire park area to identify locations suitable for housing construction. Specific sites, the number of housing units to be supplied, and construction start dates have not yet been announced.
Kim Kyung-dae Is the Current Mayor of Yongsan District
Yongsan District Mayor Kim Kyung-dae was elected in the local elections held on 2026-06-03 and began his term at 0 on July 1. According to the election results, candidate Kim Kyung-dae received 52.31% of the vote, while candidate Kang Tae-woong received 45.98%.
Author's calculation: 52.31% - 45.98% = a difference of 6.33% percentage points.
Mayor Kim previously served 3 terms on the Yongsan District Council. After running for district mayor in 2018, he made a second attempt and won. During the election campaign, he identified accelerating development projects, including the Yongsan International Business District, undergrounding the Gyeongbu Line and Gyeongui–Jungang Line, and expanding transportation infrastructure as major priorities.
On his first day in office, his first official approval was the establishment of an office dedicated to accelerating Yongsan development projects, reporting directly to the district mayor. This helps explain why an administration that actively promotes development projects can simultaneously advocate preserving Yongsan Park. Mayor Kim is not opposed to all development in Yongsan. Rather, he has taken a separate position opposing the use of Yongsan Park as a site for housing supply.
Why the Yongsan District Mayor Is Drawing Renewed Attention
The immediate issue driving recent search interest is the government's decision to begin examining whether Yongsan Park could be used for housing supply, along with Mayor Kim Kyung-dae's opposition.
On August 14, Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Kim Yoon-duk explained at a press conference marking his 1 anniversary in office that the government was examining housing supply possibilities across the entire Yongsan Park area, rather than limiting its review to Yongsan Children's Garden. He also noted that the issue would require addressing soil contamination, consultations with the U.S. military, legal questions, and discussions with the National Assembly, the Seoul Metropolitan Government, and Yongsan District.
The following day, on August 15, Yongsan District issued a separate statement declaring that it strongly opposed considering Yongsan Park as a candidate site for housing supply. The district maintains that the park should not be treated simply as land available for development.
An interview with Mayor Kim Kyung-dae released on August 16 attracted further attention. In the interview, Kim described Yongsan Park as a space that must be preserved for future generations and expressed his intention to strongly resist any attempt by the government to push ahead with development.
However, the dates must be distinguished carefully. Although the interview was released on August 16, it was conducted on August 12. Therefore, interpreting Kim's strong opposition in the interview as a response to Minister Kim Yoon-duk's remarks at the August 14 press conference would be chronologically incorrect. It is more accurate to understand the interview as expressing his existing position on the development issues surrounding Yongsan Children's Garden and Yongsan Park, which were already under discussion at the time.
Is the Government Planning to Build Apartments Across All of Yongsan Park?
Based on currently confirmed information, no such decision has been finalized. The government has indeed expanded the scope of its review from Yongsan Children's Garden to the entire Yongsan Park area. However, it subsequently clarified that this does not mean the entire park would be converted into residential land.
Following the minister's remarks, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport issued a separate explanation stating that it did not mean housing would be constructed throughout the entire park. Instead, the intention is to examine the entire park site and determine whether any locations are suitable for housing construction.
This distinction is the most important point in understanding the current controversy.
What the government has confirmed is that it is at the stage of 'examining the possibility of housing supply.' No specific location has yet been designated as a project site, no official housing supply figure has been established, and neither project approval nor a construction schedule has been confirmed.
The currently confirmed situation can therefore be summarized as follows.
Confirmed: The government is examining the possibility of housing supply within the Yongsan Park area.
Confirmed: The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport has explained that this does not mean building housing throughout the entire park.
Confirmed: On August 15, Yongsan District announced its strong opposition to the proposal under consideration.
Not finalized: Actual housing sites, the number of units to be supplied, the project implementation method, and construction and occupancy schedules.
This is also why specific housing supply figures circulating online should not be treated as finalized government plans.
What Are Yongsan District and the Seoul Metropolitan Government Concerned About?
Yongsan District maintains that Yongsan Park cannot be treated in the same way as ordinary unused land or a site available for residential development. The central point of the district's statement on August 15 was that the park's historical and symbolic significance must be preserved, along with its character as a national park intended to be returned to the public over the long term.
Mayor Kim Kyung-dae's position follows the same direction. In the interview conducted on August 12, he described Yongsan Park as a legacy that must be left to future generations and stated his intention to strongly resist any attempt to push ahead with park development.
The Seoul Metropolitan Government also stated in an official position on August 14 that developing Yongsan Park for housing supply must be approached with great caution. Seoul explained that the Special Act on the Creation of Yongsan Park establishes the preservation of the park area and the creation of recreational, leisure, and natural ecological spaces for the public as fundamental objectives. It emphasized the need for sufficient public deliberation and consensus.
There is, however, a difference in how Yongsan District and the Seoul Metropolitan Government have expressed their positions. Yongsan District explicitly declared that it 'strongly opposes' the proposal, while Seoul stated that the matter 'must be approached with great caution' and requires public discussion. These statements should not be interpreted as official positions expressing the same degree of opposition.
Has Housing Development in Yongsan Park Already Been Legally Approved?
At the current stage, there is no basis for concluding that housing development has been legally finalized. Conversely, asserting that every possible form of housing development is absolutely prohibited under existing law would also go beyond the scope of the materials confirmed in this report.
The current `Special Act on the Creation of Yongsan Park` establishes procedures for designating the Yongsan Park development and management zone. These include public hearings to gather opinions from residents and experts, consultations with the Mayor of Seoul and the heads of relevant central administrative agencies, and deliberations by the relevant committees.
Minister Kim Yoon-duk also explained that moving from a review to actual housing supply would require addressing legal issues and consulting with the National Assembly, the Seoul Metropolitan Government, Yongsan District, and the U.S. military, among others. The beginning of a government review and the finalization of project procedures are two different stages.
Determining which sites might actually be identified as candidates, whether changes to existing park plans or designated management zones would be necessary, and which legal procedures would apply would require the government to present a concrete proposal in the future.
It would be inappropriate to describe procedures that have not yet been publicly disclosed as though they had already been finalized.
Upcoming Dates and Developments to Watch
The nearest scheduled event is a meeting between Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Kim Yoon-duk and Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon planned for 2026-08-20. Minister Kim has expressed his willingness to consult with the Seoul Metropolitan Government while also indicating that the central government cannot simply do nothing because Seoul opposes the proposal.
However, the meeting on August 20 does not itself constitute a procedure for finalizing housing development in Yongsan Park. At present, it is more accurate to view the situation as a consultation stage between the central government and the Seoul Metropolitan Government, which hold different positions.
Three developments will be important in determining whether an actual policy change takes place. First, whether the government designates specific target sites within Yongsan Park. Second, whether it presents an official number of housing units and project implementation method. Third, whether it initiates formal procedures to amend the existing Yongsan Park plan or relevant legal and administrative requirements.
Until these developments occur, it would be difficult to justify broader claims such as 'apartment construction in Yongsan Park has been finalized,' 'the supply of tens of thousands of housing units has been confirmed,' or 'development of the entire park has been approved.'
The most accurate summary of the current situation is that Yongsan District Mayor Kim Kyung-dae and the district oppose considering Yongsan Park for housing supply, while the government has explained that it is reviewing the entire park area without proposing to build housing throughout the entire park. Specific housing sites and the scale of supply have not yet been finalized.
---