Yongsan USAFK Apartments Construction Will Be Started in June

South Korea and the United States agreed on a construction of apartments at the South Post area, which is south of the Yongsan base, Seoul. And the Seoul Metropolitan Government (SMG) decided to support this agreement. Thus, the United States Armed Forces in Korea (USAFK) will start the construction of two apartments buildings in June.

The chief representatives of the R.O.K.-U.S. Military Committee Meeting, which discusses all affairs of the Yongsan base, Lt. Gen. Lee Sang-Hee, Strategic Planning Chief Director of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and Lt. Gen. Daniel Zanini, Commander of the U.S. Eighth Army, announced that, "Both sides agreed to proceed the USAFK`s apartments construction in parallel with the ongoing consultation for the relocation of the Yongsan base, which will take more than ten years." at a news conference yesterday.

According to the agreement, the USAFK will build two five-story buildings (60 families) near Dragon Hill Hotel at the South Post within this year, as it was originally planned. And the apartments that is planned to be built in 2003 and 2004 as five to eight-story buildings will be located near the Defense Ministry building at the South Post in order to use them even after the U.S. military moves out of the Yongsan base.

They also agreed to discuss about the location for the apartments which will be constructed after 2005 in accordance with the consultation result of the relocation of the Yongsan base.

Lt. Gen. Lee said, "We tried to minimize the effect of the construction on the SMG`s plan for making a national park in case of the relocation of the Yongsan base."

Dong-Ki Sung esprit@donga.com