Hong Ji-sun, the nominee for minister of land, infrastructure and transport, said she would seek to stabilize home prices through sufficient and swift housing supply. On plans to build homes on the Yongsan Park site, which have drawn continued disagreement with the Seoul city government, she said any development would target peripheral plots rather than the park grounds themselves and would require public consensus. She signaled a cautious approach to regulations with direct market impact, such as raising floor area ratios for rebuilding and redevelopment projects and lifting land transaction permit zones.
In her opening remarks at a confirmation hearing before the National Assembly's Land, Infrastructure and Transport Committee on the 16th, Hong said she would "mobilize the full capacity of the public and private sectors to push housing supply swiftly in the places people want, until the market feels supply is sufficient." She stressed that she would draw on her experience in local government to remove on-the-ground obstacles such as permit delays and improve policy execution.
Urban redevelopment projects and idle land were cited as the main tools for expanding supply. In a written response submitted earlier to the National Assembly, Hong said excessive or unreasonable rules on rebuilding and redevelopment needed to be eased to boost housing supply in central Seoul. She drew a line, however, saying the impact of deregulation on the housing market must also be examined to balance supply expansion with market stability.
She also left open the possibility of using the Yongsan Park site. The plan would preserve the park's core function while reviewing the potential for housing for young adults and future generations, mainly on peripheral space such as the outer edges. At the hearing, however, she said, "No specific sites or supply volumes have been determined yet, and consultation with the Seoul city government and public consensus come first."
On greenbelt areas, she said that rather than a blanket lifting of restrictions, it would be necessary to select areas already degraded and of low conservation value for housing supply. The aim is to make maximum use of available land to address Seoul's supply shortage while minimizing side effects such as damage to green space.
Hong was cautious about lifting land transaction permit zones. On the designations covering all of Seoul and 12 areas in Gyeonggi Province, which are set to expire at the end of this year, she said she would closely examine market conditions before deciding whether to extend them. Responding to criticism that the designations dampen transactions and only push prices higher, Hong said they also play "a positive role," adding, "In Seoul as well, there have been side effects where home prices rose after regulations were lifted and land transaction permits were removed."
On the delayed opening of Samseong Station on the GTX-A express rail line due to missing reinforcing bars, Hong said the ministry would seek reimbursement from the Seoul city government for compensation costs. "We plan to claim reimbursement from the Seoul city government," she said. "The contractor and the supervising firm also bear responsibility."
