Geumcheon-gu's Mujigae Apartment Reconstruction Project Gets Green Light

New residential development in Seoul's southwestern corridor is set to expand as Geumcheon-gu pushes ahead with reconstruction of aging housing in the district.

Geumcheon-gu announced that Seoul's 11th Integrated Review Committee for Improvement Projects, which convened June 4, conditionally approved the architectural, landscape and traffic review for the Mujigae Apartment reconstruction project at 109-1 Siheung-dong.

Under the approved plan, the site will be redeveloped into nine residential buildings — five basement levels and 35 above-ground floors — comprising 906 units in total, including 87 rental units.

The existing complex was completed in the early 1980s as five 10-story buildings with 639 households. Residents have long called for accelerated reconstruction, citing persistent problems including aging infrastructure and water leaks.

After being selected as a pilot site under Seoul's Creative Improvement Plan, the project was designated a redevelopment zone in 2017 and received project implementation approval in 2021. The revised design proposal submitted through that process has now cleared the integrated review.

The new complex is expected to break from the uniformity of conventional apartment developments, delivering a varied urban skyline through strategic building placement and changes in floor height. The design incorporates visual corridors and low-energy architectural principles to create an eco-friendly and comfortable residential environment.

A terrain-adaptive design will minimize elevation differences between the interior and exterior of the complex to enhance openness, while a pedestrian network centered on public plazas and walkways is also planned.

Community facilities — including a daycare center, a small library and a shared childcare center — will be open to the public. A public cultural facility fronting Siheungtaero 73-gil will be directly accessible from the street and shared with local residents, the district said, adding that the complex is designed to engage with its surroundings as an open community.

The district added that the integrated review committee also directed the project to secure additional emergency evacuation routes in the underground levels, a requirement that will be incorporated into the final design.

"The site is ideally located between Geumcheon-gu Office Station on subway Line 1 and Siheung Sageori Station, which is set to open on the Shinansan Line, giving it excellent transit access as well as abundant green space including Anyangcheon stream and Geumnarae Central Park," Geumcheon-gu District Mayor Yoo Sung-hoon said. "We will spare no effort in supporting the creation of a comfortable living environment for local residents."