A Study on the Recently Announced Plans for Urban Planning Innovation by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, and Transport

Abstract

The current zoning system involves stringent categorization of land use, mostly for residence, commerce, and industry. Additionally, it determines the type, building coverage ratio, and floor area ratio of a building according to categories, thus restricting land utilization. Recently, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, and Transport announced the “Plans for Urban Planning Innovation.” It mainly increases the autonomy of spaces by introducing urban innovation zones, complex use zones, and mixed use zones for urban planning facilities to mitigate space regulations. First, the urban innovation zones are designated to develop creativity and innovation in urban spaces. These zones fully reorganize the current minimum site regulation zones and facilitate free space utilizations. This is because there is no application of permissible building, building coverage ratio, and floor area ratio regulations according to the zoning system. Additionally, there are few limitations on the zoning and planning contents. Those who make a proposal to designate and plan an urban innovation zone can obtain the business enforcement qualification based on the Urban Development Act to vitalize private participation. Next, the complex use zones aim to create spaces featuring the convergence of various urban functions including residence, commerce, industry, education, culture, and medicine. Such zones can accommodate diverse facilities merely through zone designation without a complex procedure to change land use and increase building coverage ratio and floor area ratio up to the legal maximum limit for a given use. Third, the mixed use zones for urban planning facilities alleviate the restrictions on buildings, building coverage ratios, and floor area ratios at an urban planning facility site for the advanced and complex functions of urban planning facilities. Such zones facilitate non-urban planning facilities and alleviate the building coverage ratio and floor area ratio two-fold. Finally, the urban innovation zones and complex use zones of the three new zone types are designated through a space restructuring plan, which is a regulation covering special cases based on the old urban planning procedure. Although it changes both the basic urban and country plan and the urban and county management plan, it disappears after the determination and announcement of an urban restructuring plan. Development gains from the designation of urban innovation zones, complex use zones, and mixed use zones for urban planning facilities will be redeemed by the obligatory installation of public facilities based on Article 52, Clause 2 of the National Land Planning Act.