Land Ministry moves to revoke approval for 142-meter tower near Jongmyo Shrine; Seoul pushes back

A dispute between the central government and the Seoul Metropolitan Government over a high-rise redevelopment project near Jongmyo Shrine — a UNESCO World Heritage Site — is intensifying. The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, designated as the lead agency in the matter, is now reviewing whether to directly revoke the project's approval, but Seoul is holding firm, insisting there is no legal basis for such action.

The Cultural Heritage Administration recently asked the government to cancel the amended project implementation plan approval for the Sewoon District 4 redevelopment, the Land Ministry and Seoul Metropolitan Government said Wednesday. The Land Ministry, as the designated lead agency, has since taken up the matter.

"We are reviewing whether the approval for Sewoon District 4 violated relevant laws and regulations concerning world heritage impact assessments," a Land Ministry official said. "Even if we move to directly revoke the amended approval, there are aspects that will need to be coordinated with Seoul and Jongno-gu."

The Sewoon District 4 project calls for a high-rise building of up to 142 meters to be built directly across from Jongmyo Shrine. Under the revised plan, the maximum building height along the Cheonggyecheon side would rise from 71.8 meters to 141.09 meters, while the height along the Jongno side would increase from 54 meters to 98.7 meters. The number of floors would go up from 20 to 38.

The Cultural Heritage Administration has argued that a world heritage impact assessment must be conducted first, warning that the project could damage the visual landscape of Jongmyo. Citing Article 188 of the Local Autonomy Act — which covers the correction of unlawful or improper orders and dispositions — the agency called for a phased response from the lead ministry. The options under discussion include ordering Seoul to direct Jongno-gu to revoke its approval, issuing a correction order directly to Jongno-gu if Seoul fails to act, and, if both steps fall through, having the lead ministry revoke the approval itself.

Seoul maintains that the Cultural Heritage Administration's demands are unwarranted, arguing that the Sewoon District 4 site falls outside Jongmyo's designated historic and cultural environment preservation zone. "A request to revoke an approval requires grounds that are serious and clear — and those do not exist here," a Seoul city official said. "Our position that this is absolutely unacceptable will remain consistent going forward."

The dispute traces back to June 18, when Jung Mun-heon, then the Jongno-gu district chief in the final days of his term, personally drafted and signed off on the amended project implementation plan for Sewoon District 4. The district gazette published the decision the following day. The Cultural Heritage Administration subsequently called on Seoul to issue a correction order revoking the approval, and sent an additional letter in July reiterating the request and asking for a response on the outcome.

Seoul refused, arguing that the head of the Cultural Heritage Administration is not the minister of a lead ministry as defined under Article 188 and therefore lacks the authority to make such a demand. Seoul's position was that the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism — not the Cultural Heritage Administration — would need to serve as the lead ministry for the legality of the approval to be challenged.

The Ministry of Interior and Safety then designated the Land Ministry, not the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, as the lead agency. That decision handed the Land Ministry — already at odds with Seoul over housing supply sites — the pivotal role on the Sewoon District 4 redevelopment as well.

Seoul has made clear it will not accept a correction order over the amended approval for Sewoon District 4. "Seoul cannot step in to overturn a decision that the Jongno-gu district chief made after considering residents' views," a city official said. "We respect the inherent authority of the Jongno-gu district office."