Prevent Speculation on New Administrative Capital in Advance

In relation to building a new administrative capital, the government decided to drive forward to tie Chungcheong regions as regions for permits of land transaction or speculative regions before the sites are selected to keep speculative buyers out.

It also decided to settle the two projects, Gyeongin Canal project and Mt. Sapae tunnel construction on Seoul Belt Highway by the end of February and by the end of March, respectively.

The Ministry of Construction and Transportation reported on the 11th these projects to the Presidential Transition Committee (PTC).

According to the PTC, the Ministry of Construction and Transportation watches the changes in real estate prices and house prices in Chungcheong regions. It is also planned to regulate by appointing the regions as regions for permits of land transaction or speculative regions before the sites are selected, if there is any movement to speculation.

If the regions are appointed as regions for permits of land transaction, there are restrictions for buying and selling lands. When one sells or buys lands over a certain scale, he or she should get permits from the head of the city or the district after examination on actual consumption, land use, appropriateness of acquired area and so on.

If the regions are tied as speculative regions, one can sell the right for the house for installment sale only after he or she pays installed amount more than twice, or more than one year since the installment sale contract. Complex APT should be distributed by means of open drawing lots.

With relation to building a new administrative capital, the government also decided to progress it by using current Urban Development Act and building sites promotion act. It decided to establish a new special act when it is hard to apply current acts. The Ministry of Construction and Transportation also decided to progress new towns construction project for two or three sites, explaining that it will take more than ten years to build a new administrative capital and it will not reduce the population of Seoul.

The Ministry of Construction and Transportation will decide whether to progress the Gyeongin Canal project or not on the basis of economic analysis of KDI and environmental impact assessment, under consultation with the PTC, the Ministry of Environment and environmentalist groups by the end of February. In case of Mt. Sapae tunnel construction, considering the strong opposition of Buddhist community, it is planned to run the committee for belt highway line adjustment which was disorganized last year to review the alternative lines and then it will make a final decision by the end of March.

Jae-Seong Hwang jsonhng@donga.com