Seoul's 'fourth business district': Former Sampyo concrete plant site to become 81-story landmark by 2032

The former Sampyo Ready-Mixed Concrete plant site in Seongsu-dong, Seongdong-gu, Seoul is set to be redeveloped into a mixed-use complex called Sampyo Global Landmark, or SGL. As foreign tourist numbers in Seongsu-dong surge, the area is emerging as a hub combining tourism, retail and office functions.

According to industry sources Friday, the former Sampyo site — where a ready-mixed concrete factory operated for more than 40 years — is now under active development. The roughly 28,000-square-meter plot was cleared in 2022, and the project aims to bring new urban functions to what was once an industrial site.

The plan cleared a Seoul Metropolitan Government architectural review committee in July and calls for a residential tower of up to 81 stories and a 53-story mixed-use office tower, together housing 403 apartment units, 61 officetel units, 130 hotel rooms, and office, retail and cultural facilities. Ground-breaking is targeted for next year, with completion set for 2032.

Alongside the development, improvements to surrounding traffic and pedestrian infrastructure are also planned. Public contributions worth about 608.1 billion won ($451 million) will fund the installation of a ramp connecting the Dongbu Arterial Road's Yongbigyo interchange and a direct ramp at the northern end of Seongsu Bridge, as well as the creation of a roughly 53,000-square-meter Seoul Unicorn Startup Hub. A pedestrian green corridor linking Seoul Forest, the Han River and Eungbongsan will also be established. The project is structured to expand both commercial and hospitality supply and public infrastructure at the same time.

According to Cushman & Wakefield Korea, Seongsu-dong recorded an 82 percent increase in foreign visitor numbers in 2025 — the highest among major commercial districts in Seoul, far outpacing Gangnam (24 percent), Myeong-dong (11 percent) and Hongdae (9 percent). Data from the Korea Tourism Organization's data lab show that foreign tourist arrivals in Seongsu 2-ga 3-dong grew from about 22,000 in 2021 to roughly 2.228 million last year, a more than hundredfold increase.

Commercial indicators are also trending upward. According to CBRE Korea, street-level retail rents in Seongsu-dong rose 14 percent over the past year as of the second quarter of this year, outpacing Gangnam (9 percent) and Myeong-dong (7 percent), while the vacancy rate was limited to 3.4 percent.

Companies are flocking to the area as well. Musinsa relocated its headquarters to Seongsu-dong in 2022, and Krafton is building a new office complex with a total floor area of about 218,000 square meters on the former E-mart Seongsu store site. G-market's headquarters and some divisions of Hyundai Autoever are also set to move to Seongsu-dong. CBRE Korea confirmed the relocations of G-market and Hyundai Autoever in its second-quarter report this year. The district is increasingly referred to in the industry as the "fourth business district," or SBD, alongside the established central business district (CBD), Gangnam business district (GBD) and Yeouido business district (YBD).

"Seongsu-dong is seeing a simultaneous rise in foreign visitors and corporate arrivals," an industry official said. "When SGL is completed and office, hospitality and public spaces are expanded together, it is expected to grow into a leading mixed-use hub in Korea where tourism and business reinforce each other."

Meanwhile, the Sampyo site is a 21-minute walk from Ttukseom Station on Seoul Metro Line 2 and a 19-minute walk from Seoul Forest Station on the Suin-Bundang Line. The site operated as a ready-mixed concrete factory for about 45 years from around 1977.