Seoul mayor expects meeting with land minister 'soon' as Yongsan Park talks continue

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon said Wednesday he expects to meet soon with Land Minister Hong Ji-sun. Speaking with reporters after an emergency session of the Greater Seoul Housing Innovation Forum at the National Assembly, Oh said: "A few days ago, I formally proposed to the ministry that we sit down for a substantive conversation, and I expect that meeting to be arranged before long." He added that working-level consultations had already begun.

Oh said he could not specify what issues would be on the agenda but noted that anyone familiar with the discussions he had held with former Land Minister Kim Yun-deok could "easily guess" what they would cover. Oh had met twice with Kim to discuss ways to boost housing supply in Seoul, including through the use of Yongsan Park.

The forum brought together lawmakers and officials to examine problems with the Lee Jae Myung administration's housing supply measures and explore solutions. Cho Jeong-hun, a People Power Party lawmaker and co-chair of the forum, criticized President Lee for "blaming the previous government and other parties for the real estate problem," adding: "If you don't have the answer, hand power back to us. You've had enough time — it's time to find one."

Oh said President Lee has asked the public to judge his real estate policy by its results, but argued that home prices have been rising for an extended period. "The binary thinking that conservative governments fuel speculation while progressive governments suppress it cannot solve the problem," he said.

He called on the government to shift away from a regulation-centered policy stance and commit to supply that can actually be built. "We also need honest reflection on why housing supply in Seoul has been blocked for so long," he added.

Asked by People Power Party lawmaker Kwon Young-se, whose constituency includes Yongsan, about his position on the park, Oh said he does not support converting it into apartment land, given that the National Assembly had passed special legislation to guarantee its development as a park. "When I was in discussions with the former minister, I made clear that while there may be room for compromise on other projects, Yongsan Park is not something I can concede on," he said.

Responding to People Power Party lawmaker Park Su-min's point that rising construction costs also need to be addressed, Oh said that is precisely why supply policy must be accelerated. "The government focused on demand management early on and only began rolling out supply measures belatedly — and even those are largely long-term plans," he said.

On a suggestion by Reform Party lawmaker and forum co-chair Lee Jun-seok that stronger regional cooperation is needed given the impact of Greater Seoul transit links on housing policy, Oh said the growing volume of commuters traveling between Incheon, Gyeonggi Province and Seoul means local governments "must communicate and coordinate closely to work through these issues."