Seoul Mayor Lee Myung-bak said Tuesday the issue regarding the new US embassy and apartment complex construction near Deoksu palace cannot be solved simply by sentiment, but must be reviewed according to related laws. Lee told reporters that denying the right to build new apartments and facilities, as a way to say simply "no" to the US was wrong.

Lee also said with regard to alternative lots for the new buildings, the local government did not have to broach the matter first, noting that negotiation could start if the US wanted it. When asked if the objection because of cultural heritages in and around Jeong-dong, Lee said the new Russian embassy had blended in, suggesting that denying the US request for the new complex for cultural heritage reasons would be difficult.

In the June 13 Mayoral election, Lee announced he would aggressively assess ways to prepare alternative lots for the new construction, as it was undesirable considering the district’s historical value and said the US demand to revise a related law was unfair.

The embassy is facing objections from civil organizations on its employee apartment near Deoksu Palace, but has expressed its intention to go ahead with the plan when it recently met with representatives, saying it is hard to acquire an alternative site at this point, and the new buildings would be designed to match Deoksu Palace and the surroundings.

Prior to the meeting, some 40 civil organizations, including Citizens’ Coalition for Economic Justice and Discovering Korean Culture Organization, formed the Citizens’ Alliance Opposing US Embassy/Apartment Construction at Deoksu Palace. The eight-floor apartment building is to accommodate 54 households, with a four-story dormitory for US marine guards, and a 15-story new embassy building.

Because the buildings are to be built near the historic site of the palace, relics and remains from the Joseon period could be buried in the area. The US Embassy has requested some 10 cultural asset search agencies to assist in excavation, but all requests were rejected. The cultural experts reportedly refused the request, saying no one wants to get involved in a project that Korean people oppose.

If the embassy fails to find an agency, the government will name one for an excavation operation. An official of Seoul metropolitan government said that if a cultural relic is discovered, the Cultural Properties Administration would determine how to preserve it, and if the discovery holds enough significance, the construction project would not be approved, or the plan would have to be adjusted. The site where the apartment is to be built is highly likely to have historical relics buried, as Seonwonjeon, a shrine with portraits of Joseon kings up to early 20th century, was there.

The law states a newly constructed building within 100m radius of Deoksu Palace should be built to a height that a person can look up from the site 27 degrees or less, and the US embassy and apartment buildings meet the restriction.

However, civil organizations insist that in addition to the existing British Embassy, and newly built Russian Embassy in Jeong-dong, the Canadian Embassy will also be constructed in the area, and adding the US Embassy and apartment building would be symbolically a repetition of the tragic history of occupation in the late Joseon period.

The US Embassy requested to make the diplomatic facility exempted from the Housing Construction Promotion Act, but was rejected. The current Housing Construction Promotion Act requires all communal housing building with over 20 household units to have parking facilities and a playground, and has to be distributed by lot sale.

However, civic organizations are demanding the government and Seoul City to repurchase the palace site and designate the palace and Jeong-dong area as a cultural district, and to provide an alternate site for the embassy and the apartment buildings. A city official said that as long as the embassy complies with the restrictions, the city has no choice but to issue an approval.

The embassy was to have moved to the old Gyeonggi High School site according to the 1984 Korea-US agreement, but the project was halted due to parking problems. While the US Embassy submitted a report on the building’s influence on traffic, and a business plan to the Jung District Office in December 2001, the project was turned down due to insufficient parking space.

The embassy and apartment building needs to secure parking space for at least 529 cars according to the Seoul municipal regulation, but the plan only indicates space for 116 cars. The Embassy has requested Korean government to revise the law on parking facilities to let the diplomatic buildings to have smaller parking space.

Therefore, the US Embassy should resubmit the building design compliant with construction regulations, unless the government provides an alternative site and the US Embassy agrees to change the plan. (Kim Seong-hyeon, danpa@chosun.com )