Hyundai adds urban forest to headquarters plan to whittle away at Seoul's resistance

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Hyundai adds urban forest to headquarters plan to whittle away at Seoul's resistance

Published: 19 Mar. 2025, 15:37 Updated: 19 Mar. 2025, 16:12

SARAH CHEA
[email protected]

Audio report: written by reporters, read by AI

A render of Hyundai Motor's Global Business Complex project in Gangnam District, southern Seoul, which includes three 54-story skyscrapers and a 1.4-hectare forest. [HYUNDAI MOTOR]

Hyundai Motor plans to develop a 1.4-hectare urban forest around its proposed triplet of skyscrapers in Gangnam District, southern Seoul, providing actual leverage in the search for an end to its yearslong tug-of-war with the Seoul Metropolitan Government over approval for construction.

The Korean automaker unveiled a render on Wednesday of the forest, located inside its Global Business Complex (GBC), which will serve as its new headquarters and also contain cultural and commercial facilities.

The urban forest area will be open to the public and contain ginko trees, the official tree of Seoul.

Hyundai and Seoul are in a bitter, ongoing battle of nerves regarding the company's revised proposal for the GBC project — which includes three 54-story buildings with a height of 242 meters (794 feet) and two shorter buildings.

In 2019, Seoul initially approved Hyundai's plan to erect a 105-story tower with a height of 569 meters on the company's 79,342-square-meter (854,000-square-foot) site in Samseong-dong, expecting a landmark structure that the company said would offer public benefits, and construction began immediately in 2020.

Hyundai, however, proposed a redesign of the complex and notified the city of its intention to build two 55-story buildings last year in consideration of the enormous expenses that may be incurred in building a massive skyscraper. The Seoul city government harshly opposed the plan at the time, arguing that negotiations should restart from the beginning.

Hyundai then withdrew the plan and resubmitted the design as three 54-story towers in February, which is currently awaiting the city's approval.

Under the new layout, the triplet of towers will house office space, luxury hotels and "officetels," dual-purpose units used for commercial and residential purposes.

The two shorter buildings will contain cultural and commercial amenities such as exhibition halls and entertainment venues.

Hyundai said it will launch full-scale negotiations with the Seoul city government in March.

"Hyundai's GBC is pivotal to Seoul's development, but the construction process is progressing at a glacial pace," said Kim Chang-gyu, an official from the government handling the project. "We will do our best to negotiate efficiently so that through it, Seoul can enhance its competitiveness and create new, quality jobs."

BY SARAH CHEA [[email protected]]