Suspicions over Changing Use of Land

Lee Ki-myoung and Yoon Dong-hyuck, chairman of Somyoung Development, are under suspicion for having changed the use of land in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province, where they are promoting a business to establish a silver town. The area of 106,000 pyeong is a green zone that can be developed further.

The use of land owned by Lee and his brothers was changed to a green zone from an agricultural zone when the Gyeonggi Provincial Government approved the urban management plan of Yongin City Government on January 22 this year, said the City Government on June 1.

Experts in urban planning, however, pointed out that it is hard to imagine that the land was designated as a green zone that could be developed, not a preserved green zone.

“Next to the land is Guseong Residential Land Development Zone, designated as such by the Ministry of Construction and Transportation in December 1999. The land should have been designated as a preserved green zone to prevent reckless development,” said an expert. “It is hard to understand how the land became a green zone.”

In addition, it is doubtful that the principle of urban planning that designates steep areas such as Lee`s land as a preserved green zone did not apply here.

Lee was told to have contacted some senior officials of the city government to change the use of the land since the late 2000 when the city was setting up urban planning. This also backs suspicions.

“There was a rumor that Chairman Yoon was busy changing the use of Lee’s land,” said some developers in Yongin. “Yoon used to show off the relationship between senior officials and himself,” they added.

It was January this year when the land was changed to a green zone where welfare facilities could be established. However, it is known that most of the changing process was done while the provincial governor and the mayor from the New Millennium Democratic Party were in office.

“The land next to the residential land development zone isn’t always designated a preserved green zone,” said officials from the city and provincial governments. “In other words, this has nothing to do with the land owned by Lee.”

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