Yongsan District
Yongsan District (Korean: 용산구, romanized: Yongsan-gu, [jo̞ŋsʰa̠n ku]) is one of the 25 districts of Seoul, South Korea.
Yongsan
용산구
19
1896 (as Yongsan-bang), 1946 (Yongsan-Gu)[1]
Yongsan-gu Council
Park Hee-young (Independent)
21.87 km2 (8.44 sq mi)
219,102
10,000/km2 (26,000/sq mi)
+82-2-7xx
Yongsan has a population of 231,685 (2020) and has a geographic area of 21.87 km2 (8.44 sq mi), and is divided into 19 dong (administrative neighborhoods). Yongsan is located near Downtown Seoul, on the northern bank of the Han River, bordering the city districts of Jung to the north, Mapo to the west, Yeongdeungpo and Dongjak to the southwest, Seocho and Gangnam District to the southeast, and Seongdong to the east.
Description[edit]
Yongsan District is a district in central Seoul, South Korea. It sits to the north of the Han River and is part of the Seongjeosimni (Outer old Seoul) area immediately south of Seoul's historic center in Jung district on the southern side of Namsan. It is home to roughly 250,000 people and is divided into 20 dong, or neighborhoods. Notable locations in Yongsan District include Yongsan Station, the sprawling Yongsan Electronics Market, Haebangchon and the Itaewon commercial district. Itaewon is widely known as one of the most ethnically diverse regions in Korea. Many foreigners gravitate to its shopping centers and nightlife.
It is the site of Yongsan Garrison, a large United States military base which, as of 2021, has gradually been wound down with the US forces being moved to Camp Humphreys in Pyeongtaek.
Geography[edit]
Yongsan is located next to the Han River, with level ground in the west of the district which has been used for transportation (rail) and commercial use since the early 20th century. To the east and north in the land is steeper and rises towards Namsan which lies to the north. Namsan has an elevation of 243m and consists mostly of granite.[2] The low lying western section of the district is approximately 15-20 above sea level. This low-lying area has been prone to flooding during periods of heavy rainfall, a common issue with most of the low lying riverside districts in the city.[3]
Politics and government[edit]
The headquarters of the Korean Ministry of National Defense (MND) are located in Yongsan, in between the northern and southern sections of Yongsan Garrison, close to Samgakji station.[14]
On March 20, 2022, South Korea's President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol announced that he would take office on May 10 of the same year in the Ministry of National Defense building in Yongsan District, Seoul.[15]
National Park Proposal[edit]
The withdrawal of most US personnel and infrastructure from Yongsan will free up a significant amount of land within the district, land which has been under foreign control for over a century. The first proposal for redeveloping the site came from the former president Roh Moo-Hyun in 2005.[20]
Since then, negotiations between South Korea and the US over transfer of the land have taken place with the issue of relocating to Pyeongtaek and contamination of the Yongsan site causing delays to the plan.[21]
As envisaged in late 2019, the site will become an ecological park of some 3.03 million sq. meters, slightly smaller than Central Park in New York.[22]
In January 2021 the Seoul Metropolitan Government announced that the area would be called Yongsan Park. The name was chosen after a poll in which residents submitted 9,401 name proposals in 2020.[23]
