The Governance of Land Use in Korea
Urban Regeneration
This report examines land-use trends, policies and practices in Korea, in particular in the city of Busan, through the lens of urban regeneration and citizen participation. Land-use planning is critical for the efficient and inclusive management of cities, pursuing sustainable and balanced development and improving quality of life and regional competitiveness. Korea has benefitted from comprehensive and well-structured, hierarchical land-use planning and urban regeneration frameworks. However, faced with a series of demographic and economic challenges, together with geographic factors and historical developments, Korea needs to re-evaluate land-use management and urban regeneration to leverage inclusive growth and boost competitiveness in Korean cities. This report argues that involving citizens in land-use planning and urban regeneration is essential to collect better quality information as a basis for plans, decisions and outcomes. This report is of relevant to urban planners, land use especialists, and city managers who work on urban regeneration projects and citizens’ participation.
Citizen participation in land-use planning and urban regeneration in Korea
This chapter examines citizen participation in land-use planning and urban regeneration in Korea, and in particular in Busan. It begins with an analysis of citizen engagement in public affairs at national level and the role of local governments in promoting citizen participation. It underlines how citizens are increasingly at the centre of urban regeneration projects in Korea. The chapters then moves on to analyse citizen participation in urban regeneration projects in Busan. It highlights how the Busan Metropolitan Government encourages residents to be more active in urban regeneration projects and the need to match tools to objectives to facilitate citizen participation. Finally, the chapter explores some options to enhance citizen participation in urban regeneration in Busan.