From a 14th-floor unit at Gangbyeon Station Central I-Park in Guui-dong, Gwangjin District, Seoul, the Lotte World Tower in Jamsil rises beyond the sunlit Han River. Only a few years ago, the site was home to Hanyang Row Houses, a cluster of low-rise homes where most units were semi-basement dwellings. The neighborhood, long plagued by narrow roads and a shortage of parking, has been transformed into four 15-story apartment buildings, with residents beginning to move in this month. It is the first complex completed since Seoul introduced its Moa Housing program.
Visiting the complex on the 28th in his first public engagement after the Chuseok holiday, Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon said 137 Moa Town districts — areas that group together multiple Moa Housing projects — are under way across the city. "Starting with this first one, the second and third will follow soon," he said. "An increase in complexes like this could be the most effective measure for addressing Seoul's unstable housing market."
About 70% of the units at Hanyang Row Houses were semi-basement dwellings, but the project site measured 9,878 square meters, short of the 10,000-square-meter threshold required for redevelopment. Applying Moa Housing review standards, the city raised the maximum height from the originally planned 10 stories to 15 and the floor area ratio from 234% to 248%. The project cleared an integrated review in June 2023 and was completed in August this year. The original 99 units grew to 215, a net gain of 116. Moa Housing, introduced by the city four years ago, is a small-scale redevelopment program that combines adjacent lots to build multi-unit housing in aging low-rise neighborhoods where large-scale redevelopment is difficult.
In Gwangjin District, where the first Moa Housing complex has opened, the program is spreading to Jayang-dong, Guui-dong and Gwangjang-dong. Gangbyeon Station Central I-Park sits next to Lotte Castle East Pole, a newly built mixed-use complex near Guui Station, and a site at 587-58 Guui-dong just across a boundary wall is now pursuing a Moa Housing project of 591 units. Ten other Moa Town projects are under way in areas including Jayang 1-dong, Jayang 2-dong and Gwangjang-dong, the third-highest total among Seoul's districts after Jungnang, with 18, and Seongbuk, with 11. Under plans the city disclosed at the site, housing in these areas is expected to grow from 8,362 units to 12,526, an increase of 4,164.
Interest is running high, with residents in 10 more areas including Gunja-dong and Jayang 3-dong simultaneously gathering consent forms to be selected as Moa Town candidate sites. As multiple projects advance at once, some residents say development must fit in with surrounding areas, citing concerns about higher density. Jang, a resident who moved into Gangbyeon Station Central I-Park, told the mayor at a meeting that day: "A Moa Town project is under way right next door, and I'm worried about whether it will blend well with our complex." After touring the site, Oh said the adjacent project will be larger and taller than this complex. "When it is finished, I hope the result will fit in well with the new apartments," he said.
Because many association members are older, some have delayed moving in after struggling to cover their share of the costs. Move-ins are scheduled through the end of the year, but only 31 households are expected to relocate by the end of this month. Association officials at the site said some older members required to pay additional contributions have postponed moving in because they could not secure loans. "Many of the association members are in their 60s and 70s, and some are retired, so households that have to pay contributions may move in later because of loan problems," Jang said.
