The Transformation of the Comprehensive Development Plan for the Jamsil District in the 1970s and its Differentiation in Urban Planning and Architecture

The purpose of this study is to analyze the two comprehensive development plans established for the Jamsil district in the 1970s, aiming to understand the planners’ intentions to overcome the limitations of Land Readjustment—the urban planning tool used in the earlier period—and to examine the subsequent process of change. Around 1970, numerous construction projects were undertaken in Seoul, with Land Readjustment being the most common method for development. However, this approach proved inadequate for comprehensive urban planning, as it was limited to two-dimensional aspects of infrastructure, such as land use, road layouts and plot subdivisions. Although the '1970 Plan' was not fully realized, it significantly influenced various aspects of the urgently revised '1974 Plan,' including land use, residential planning, community development, and project implementation methods. The study reveals that the differences between the 1970 and 1974 plans were largely due to drastic political and social changes, as well as the growing influence of city planners, engineers, and techonocrats over architects in the decision-making and implementation processes. While architects contributed idealistic, three-dimensional perspectives in the 1970 plan, the 1974 plan more systematically reflected the input of planners and civil engineers, focusing on practical implementation. Despite its limitations, the two comprehensive development plans for the Jamsil District represent a pivotal moment in the urban architectural history of Seoul, serving as an important precedent for urban development in the 1980s.