The Seoul Metropolitan Government plans to set up a global future complex to attract companies investing in high-technology industries, social networking services, media and information to create Korea’s Silicon Valley.

The complex will be built on a site of a demolished ready-mixed concrete factory in eastern part of Seoul and the city government plans to increase the floor area ratio to 800 percent to make it a landmark like the Lotte World Tower in southeastern part of Seoul.

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon unveiled the plan during a visit to Grand Canal Dock in Dublin, Ireland, according to an official from the Seoul Metropolitan Government on Sunday. This is the first time Oh presented a specific plan to utilize the former plant site of Sampyo Group, a South Korean manufacturer of construction materials.

“Dublin developed the backwater area around Grand Canal Dock into a base for cutting-edge companies,” said Oh. The Canal Dock district is called Europe’s Silicon Valley as most of the European headquarters of global information technology companies, such as Google LLC and Apple Inc., are located there. Oh is envisioning a Korean version of Silicon Valley in the 28,804 square meters of land.

The city government also plans to make the envisioned complex a landmark along the Han River as the site is where the Han River and Jungnangcheon Stream meet and is open in all directions.

The Lotte World Tower, a 555-meter 123-story skyscraper, and Yeouido are representative areas with a floor area ratio of 800 percent. The envisioned GFC Tower can also become a skyscraper with more than 70 floors if it is built with only one building. The city government plans to draw around 600 billion won ($458.9 million) from public contributions for increasing the floor area ratio and will discuss with architects how to utilize the fund.

Furthermore, Seoul plans to transform the area around Seoul Forest, a large park near the demolished plant site, into a cultural space for exhibitions and conventions. This area is similar in many ways to the Dublin Docklands, according to the city government. The Dublin Docklands houses a 2,100-seat Grand Canal Theater near its commercial district.

Meanwhile, the Seoul Metropolitan Government has selected five alleyways with high potential to grow into international commercial and tourist areas in the city, including Seochon, Itaewon, Suyu-dong, Sinchon and Cheonho Bicycle Intersection, and will invest up to 1.5 billion won in each district over the next three years.

“The objective of this initiative is to attract more domestic and foreign visitors by incorporating global elements and infrastructure that cater to foreigners, while maintaining the unique identity and character of the Korean alleys,” said a city official.

By Park Je-wan, Kwon Oh-gyun, and Yoon Yeon-hae

[ⓒ Pulse by Maeil Business Newspaper & mk.co.kr, All rights reserved]