"K-Experience Culture Complex" To Replace KAL's Songhyeon-Dong Project. Really?

The Songhyeon-dong drama reminds me of the 'Trou des Halles' feuilleton in Paris. In both cases, a massive lot in the dead center of the capital remains empty for years while all stakeholders debate over its purpose. I wish a better ending to Seoul than the site of the former Paris wholesale market: then mayor Jacques Chirac opted for the behemoth of an urban mess that to this day cripples the city center (under renovation, Le Forum des Halles will reopen next year).

Left: Les Halles, Paris (from the 'trou des Halles' to the Forum des Halles to the new - and improved? - Forum des Halles) / Right: Songhyeon-dong, Seoul (from a hole in downtown Seoul to Mario Botta's caprice for KAL, to...?)

In case you missed the previous episodes*: 

• Korean Air wants to build a 7-star hotel on prime land, the 30,000 sqm site formerly used for US Embassy staff in Songhyeon-dong, between the Gyeongbokgung and Insadong. 
• To tame conservationists opposed to the project, KAL pledges to give it a 'hanok-ish' look.
• But the main hurdle is legal: regulations forbid certain activities in the vicinity of schools. Intense lobbying to move the school and change the law ensues.
• CHO Hyun-ah's "Nutrage" incident torpedoes KAL's ambitions on a land Hanjin Group (the chaebol piloted by her family) doesn't even own
• Last May emerges a new path, more culture-oriented:

twitter.com/theseoulvillage/status/600102138790825984 (20150518 @theseoulvillage)

Since yesterday's presser**, we have a clearer picture of what may come next:

• all the land shall be occupied by a "K-Experience Culture Center", to be completed by 2017
• the government and Hanjin Group shall collaborate on the project
• the building will respect hanok architecture, but with top notch technologies
• no hotel (even if KAL didn't abandon all hope), no casino - but no formal pledge that they'll never appear...

Authorities seem trapped by binding engagements with Hanjin. Politically, they cannot let KAL do what they want, or they would face public outcry. But at the end of the day, behind the cultural alibi, the group must somehow get some decently fat cash cow to milk.

This "traditional" "K-Experience Culture Center" is a classic gimmick for empty cultural shells build in downtown Seoul, and I don't think that at this stage authorities have more clues about how they will fill it than they do for the similar hanokish traditional center planned across Changdeokgung (see "Gwanghwamun, Donhwamun, and the Tale of two Royal Roads"). Expect some tribute paid to long-gone Choseon landmarks.

Worse: the "K-Experience" part has the sirupy "hallyu" flavor Korea must ASAP stop spreading all across its cultural spectrum (see "Heralding cultural diversity - a stronger and more sustainable Korean Wave"). That's more like the "classic gimmick for empty cultural shells" built on the other side of the river (BTW yet another kpoop / kdrama center has been announced near Jamsil).

Meanwhile, on the other side of Sejong-daero, the Four Seasons Seoul is getting ready for inauguration (October). The 'hanok' touch lies mostly on its curves (not to mention Hwang Ran's installation in the lobby!)...

Hanok curves for the Four Seasons Seoul (Jongno, Seoul) - twitter.com/theseoulvillage/status/631776061731139585

... and Airbnb keeps growing its base in the Korean capital, still under regulatory radars...

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* e.g. "From The Outside, KAL's "7 Star Hanok Hotel" Showcases Excellence in Freight", ""Korean Air Grounded : Seoul 7 Star Hotel Delayed"
** featuring the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, as well as KAL's JO Seong-bae - see "[일문일답] 조성배 대한항공 상무 "송현동 부지에 호텔 건립 포함 안돼"" (Newsis 20150818) or "Korean Air hotel plan turns into culture center" (KJD 20150819)

From The Outside, KAL's "7 Star Hanok Hotel" Showcases Excellence in Freight

Remember Korean Air's "hanok hotel" project in  Songhyeon-dong(see "Korean Air Grounded : Seoul 7 Star Hotel Delayed")? Rather than traditional Korean architecture, the first aerial views bring to mind plane hangars ("Excellence in Freight"?), computer chips, old tape recorder keys, or maybe the kind of golden piano keys Liberace's diamond-laden fingers would love to strike:

Source "7성급 한옥호텔'이라더니…귀퉁이 영빈관이 '고작'"  (News1 - 20140417) via Naver

The architect KIM Won - who worked with the great KIM Swoo-geun at Space Group - went as far as wondering if this was truly the work of a renowned colleague (Mario Botta, who did the round part of the Leeum), and how this thing could pretend to be inspired by hanok.

Yes, if you look closely in the upper left corner, you do find a couple of hanoks, but they sound very much like the "Hanok Alibi" I wrote about last year in "Build a hanok and they will come - Marketing impostures and genuine slow urbanism":

twitter.com/theseoulvillage/status/310299015470256128

And you can't even see them from the street the way you do for the Office of Royal Genealogy at the nearby MMCA Seoul*..., but that's consistent with a non-inclusive, resolutely exclusive 7-star concept that, otherwise and regardless of its degree of hanokness, seems optimized to leverage on intense foot traffic at a key touristic intersection, with a gallery facing Insadong. 

Note that unlike in Blingblingistan (a.k.a. Dubai), hotel classifications don't reach as far as 7 stars in Korea, but that's another story. At least - speaking of stories - this high-profile project remains low-rise...

... and at ground level for the moment, because the land has remained untouched so far. I took this view from across the street a couple of years ago...

November 2011

... and News1 published this close-up yesterday: 

Source "서울 호텔 이용률 78.9%, 공급과잉 우려"  (News1 - 20140416)

News1's shot was taken not far from where the gallery will be erected, at the bottom righ corner in the aerial view above. This angle prolongs the Insadong axis, and you can see the Folk Museum, Cheong Wa Dae, and Bugaksan in the background.

Note that this last picture illustrated an article about the mounting risk of hotel rooms oversupply in Seoul, a recurrent topic on my own "Korean errlines"**, and an issue raised yesterday by the CCEJ (Citizens' Coalition for Economic Justice) during a meeting where the so-called 'hanok hotel' came under fire.

Intense lobbying eventually seems to be paying for KAL, and leveraging the government's recent deregulation frenzy, an obviously tailor-made reform took care last month of the law that had blocked the company for years (no hotels could be built near schools, and there's a couple of them just next door):

"Law changes to allow hotels near schools. Will #KoreanAir build its 'hanokized' 7-star near #Anguk?" (20140327)
twitter.com/theseoulvillage/status/449016361151242241

So if you want an aerial view from a hotel with hanok, I suggest the one I took a couple of days ago from the 23rd floor of The Shilla:

"#Jangchung Gymnasium in its #Colosseum stage (in the distance, #DDPSeoul, #Doota Tower)"
twitter.com/theseoulvillage/status/455589503902568448

Following a bottom right - top left diagonal:

• in the right corner: the hotel's Yeong Bing Gwan, a 1967 hanok used for weddings and receptions
• in the center: the old Jangchung Gymnasium, beheaded during its renovation, almost looks like Roma's Colosseo
• in the background: on the way to Doota Tower, the shining flank of the giant squid (the DDP - see "Sneak peek inside Dongdaemun Design Plaza and Park")

And of course, Wongudan's Hwanggungu Pavilion is still standing on Westin Chosun territory.

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* BTW if you fancy more animated aerial views of this block, re-watch "MMCA Seoul from above")
** along with the future magnets on each side of the Gyeongbokgung: this KAL hotel and the Four Seasons (see for instance "Four Seasons Seoul", "A 6 Star Hotel in Gwanghwamun?")

Paradise City v. Sin City

Last Tuesday, Paradise Group unveiled its "Paradise City" project on Yeongjongdo, a walking distance from Incheon International Airport. Construction starts next year and the first section shall be delivered by 2017. Ultimately, 160,000 visitors shall come daily, including a majority of Chinese tourists and business travelers*.

The KRW 1.9 Tn resort will include hotels, restaurants, convention spaces, and of course Paradise's speciality: foreigner-only casinos. The group already operates one nearby at the Hyatt Regency Incheon, and shouldn't remain the only big player for long in what seems to be the future Korean Las Vegas.

Paradise City

If you remember, a few years ago, IFEZ considered casinos as a potential 'vertical' to boost then ailing Songdo**. If the International Business District has since signed investors more consistent with its initial positioning, the potential remains huge for a gateway that welcomes tens of millions of visitors every year, including a growing number of Chinese citizens, some of whom already own a flat in Songdo. Yeongdongpo already boasts significant tourist infrastructures, and recent visa exemptions for short term stays considerably boosted the market of passengers in transit.


Incheon dreams of becoming the Northeast Asia rival to Macau, and the local casino king Stanley Ho doesn't seem to mind. He even wants to join the party, along with Universal Entertainment (Japan) and Vegas giant Ceasars Entertainment (USA, in a JV with Indonesia's Lippo Group***). But since foreign companies are not allowed to run casinos in Korea, they've been denied agreements so far, giving a head start to the national champion. This might change, and the same players are probably waiting for further regulation evolutions, in particular a "cruise bill" that could allow foreigner-only floating casinos (a life saver for OH Se-hoon's Floating Island?).

The next day, Gangwon-do announced a plan to develop Korea's first nude beach.
Try to top(less) that, KIM Jong-un! In his arms race for olympic gold and tourist silver (brand new water park, Masikryong Ski Resort), the young leader might be tempted to develop new unclad vehicles.


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*"Paradise Co. to build casino complex near Incheon airport" (Yonhap News 20131022)
** "DMC at full throttle - Songdo from Sim City to Sin City?" (2011/04)
*** Midan City: midancity.com

Four Seasons Seoul

Just to wrap up my January 2012 post on Mirae Asset's luxury hotel project in Gwanghwamun ("A 6 Star Hotel in Gwanghwamun?"), which as expected went to Four Seasons, and will open on May 2015:

See also "Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts enters Korea" (Four Seasons PR 20130904)

For the prestigious hotel group, Seoul fills a gap in an increasingly strategic region. Mirae Asset confirm their ambitions in hospitality businesses: they bought the Four Seasons Sydney a few days before the deal was announced (from Eureka Funds Management, see "Four Seasons sold for $340 million" - The Sydney Morning Herald 20130821), and also pilot the Courtyard by Marriott in Pangyo.

Now I realize that I never shared any image of a project I often pass by. Well the working site is not that spectacular...

March 14, 2013 (much more advanced today!)

... and the architecture not very original either:




The future 317-room hotel near Sejongno Sageori

 
As far as office spaces are concerned, Gwanghwamun area has been dotted with many new towers over the past years, and in order to fill them, operators had to suck tenants out of older and lower tier buildings. If many hotels will open across Seoul in the months and years to come, this shouldn't be the case for a hospitality franchise targeting elites.

Still, competition will be fierce. Particularly since all major players have completed renovation, most recently their main rival, The Shilla Seoul, which at last decided to act as a leader by opening a high end Korean restaurant: even if they don't make a fortune with 'La Yeon', that's a higher calling (see "Korean Cuisine Aiming At World's Top Five. China is watching"). I would be disappointed if Four Seasons Seoul failed to propose fine Korean dining.


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A bump in the road for serviced residences in Korea ?

Following a decision by Korea's Supreme Court, major serviced residence operators could be asked to cease operations, the time for them to adapt... or rather for Korean law to adapt to modern hospitality standards.

Korea Hotel Association successfully lobbied for this decision, which appears to be based on a loophole somewhere between classic hotels and officetels in Korea. A real problem for a country boasting such ambitions for tourism : global leaders, like France, do have special legislative arrangements for serviced residences. Furthermore, Korea really needed serviced residences to offer the whole range of solutions to international travelers.

A quick and fair solution will probably be found to prevent an embarrassing moment for everyone, and send another positive sign overseas confirming the vitality of Korean hospitality.

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Seoul Plaza Hotel joins the renovation frenzy

From May 3rd, the Seoul Plaza Hotel will be closed for renovations. It should reopen 6 month later, about 10 days before the G20 Summit (November 2010). Will remain open for business during the renovation : the Grand Ballroom banquet and wedding facilities, the spa and fitness, and the hotel's restaurants with a direct access from the outside.

The 34 year old hotel will change its white dress for a metal-bronze look, and a new positioning as a "European boutique hotel". The number of guest rooms will be cut from 445 down to 400 to accomodate more suites. The Westin Chosun and Hotel Shilla have also been recently improved, but this one moves after the downturn, a clear sign of optimism from hospitality businesses in Korea. Tourism and logistics infrastructures are among the sectors where Foreign Direct Investment is booming, and Seoul keeps gaining momentum as a major touristic as well as business / convention destination.

On the other side of Seoul Plaza, another landmark is undergoing a total relooking : the new Seoul City Hall just completed its basement levels, so the big wave should start bulging anytime soon*. Meanwhile, you can visit the small exhibition about that major (indeed) project, including images from the propositions that were turned down**.

While I'm at it : Sejongno and Taepyeongno will soon be called "Sejongdaero" or Sejong Avenue. I guess it doesn't change anything as far as the "dongs" are concerned but for the road itself, it means one single name between Gwanghwamun and Sungnyemun, and its confirmation as the spine of downtown Seoul.


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* I can't help but see a tsunami there (see "Business for the Environment Global Summit 2010 in Seoul")
** Today, the square was not really festive, hosting a ceremony to mourn Cheonan victims

Korean Hotels Call For Help - The Fifth Star

I recently (and again) complained about the tragic lack of high end Korean restaurants in luxury hotels :

"Every 5 star hotel owned by a Korean chaebol should keep a top Korean
restaurant: that's a key element of the international image." (see "Korean Cuisine Aiming At World's Top Five. China is watching" April 7th, 2009)

The JoongAng Daily just mentioned this issue*, pointing out the fact that only 4 of Seoul's 19 five-stars hosted Korean restaurants.

The newspaper even named names and quoted figures : good points for the Sheraton Walkerhill ("Ondal" restaurant, 40% of the turnover generated by foreigners.), the Lotte Hotel main ("Mungunghwa" - foreigners : 60%), or the Renaissance Seoul ("Sabiru")**... but poor score for the Westin Chosun and its peers, where you may enjoy some Korean food but not in a Korean restaurant. What to say of The Shilla ? Seoul's most prestigious hotel closed "Sorabol" a few years ago. Luckily enough, they at least maintained their fantastic sashimi master at Ariake.

I couldn't agree more with LEE Chun-sik (Sheraton) when he confirms this obvious fact : "Five-star hotels in any countries are responsible for preserving and developing local food and culture".

Why not strip of one star those who dare disagree ?



* "Hotels ask for state help to start Korean eateries" (May 6th, 2009)
** I know, that's only 3 out of 4, but I'm too lazy to check and complete the list.