This photo, taken on Sept. 1, 2019, shows an aerial view of the Yongsan Garrison in Seoul. (Yonhap)
SEOUL, July 21 (Korea Bizwire) — A joint panel of government and civilian experts on Tuesday endorsed a revised plan for a national park in Seoul to be built on land previously occupied by the U.S. Forces Korea (USFK), further expanding what would be South Korea’s largest urban park.
In its second meeting, the state-civilian panel on the construction project decided to move the proposed new headquarters of the national police to a different location in Seoul, leaving an additional 13,200 square meters of land for the envisioned Yongsan park.
The panel earlier decided to incorporate the existing War Memorial and a family park in the area into the new national park, set to be built by 2027.
With the latest addition of the lot vacated by USFK, the size of the envisioned park now stands at nearly 3 million square meters, slightly smaller than New York’s Central Park.
The relocation of the new police headquarters also means nearly the entire land returned by the USFK will now turn into green areas.
The USFK began vacating its Yongsan garrison in 2017 under a plan to relocate most of its bases in the country to an expanded base in Pyeongtaek, some 70 kilometers south of Seoul.
South Korea is said to have spent some 18 trillion won (US$15 billion) to refurbish the Pyeongtaek base and help relocate U.S. troops further away to the rear of the heavily fortified inter-Korean border, the world’s last remaining frontline of the Cold War.
The relocation of the new police headquarters, originally planned to be built on a lot returned by USFK, will also allow future visitors to the planned Yongsan park to enjoy urban greenery from the Han River all the way up to Mount Namsan without any disruption, according to the panel.
Meanwhile, the government said some of the returned facilities at the Yongsan garrison, including an officers’ quarters, will be open to the public from the start of next month.
“The opening of the facilities to the public has the special meaning of the first step in returning to the people the Yongsan base that has been completely shut for such a long time,” said Land Minister Kim Hyun-mee.
“The government will come up with various ways for the people to take part in transforming the Yongsan base into the country’s first national park that reflects our hope for peace and the future,” she added.
(Yonhap)
