Press Releases 04~05

U.S. Embassy's Construction Plans

Questions and Answers

The United States, as a friend and ally of Korea, has the deepest respect for the Korean people, Korean culture, and Korean law. As the U.S. plans construction of a new chancery and residential facilities this year, the 12Oth anniversary of the establishment of U.S.-Korea diplomatic relations, the U.S. Embassy intends to abide by Korean laws and regulations and to preserve and enhance the traditional character and beauty of the Chung-dong neighborhood in full cooperation with the Korean Government and local officials. In that regard, the Embassy hopes that the following information about the construction will clarify our plans and intentions regarding the project.

1. What are the U.S. Embassy's construction plans?

The U.S. Embassy plans a two-phase project to replace some of its housing with modern, secure facilities that meet current standards and to construct a new Chancery building that reflects the importance of the U.S.-Korea relationship in this 12Oth anniversary year.

We estimate that the first phase, the construction of 54 diplomatic residences to replace the current Embassy residences in Chung-dong and Anguk-dong, will be completed by summer 2004. This phase will be constructed on Embassy property already occupied by Embassy residents. The second phase of the project, construction of a new Embassy building adjacent to the residences, is scheduled to be completed in 2008. Its completion will enable us to fulfill a longstanding agreement with the Government of Korea to convey the current Embassy building to the Government of Korea.

Our aim for both phases of the project is to construct tasteful, state-of-the-art facilities that will be a source of pride for both Americans and Koreans. Just as Americans accept and appreciate having the diplomatic representatives of our friends and allies living in the heart of our capital, we are honored as Americans to have lived in the center of Seoul among our Korean friends for so long.

2. Why are you planning this new construction in Chung-dong?

Chung-dong has long historical associations with the American Mission to Korea. King Kojong originally designated part of this area for American representatives to live and work in recognition of our being the first Western country to assign a resident diplomat to Korea. The King had the U.S. Legation House built on that site for the first U.S. representative to Korea in 1883, and the USG purchased the site from the royal family in 1888. (The Embassy has carefully preserved and is restoring the original Legation House.) American Ambassadors have lived on this designated property for 119 years.

In 1948, the U.S. Government, with the assistance of the Government of the Republic of Korea, purchased property adjacent to this designated area for use as a residential compound. Mission families have lived there ever since. The former Gyunggi Girl's High School property was purchased from the City of Seoul in 1986, at the Korean Government's recommendation, for the express purpose of becoming the site of the new U.S. Embassy. In 1997, with the cooperation of the Korean Government, the U.S. Embassy sold its residential property in Anguk-dong to raise funds to construct a new chancery and replacement residences at the Chung-dong site.
(Chronology of U.S. Embassy Properties)

3. What about possible old palace remains under the site?

American representatives have lived and worked on this site since 1883. Prior to that time, virtually the entire Chung-dong neighborhood, including the current sites of newspaper companies, hotels, major commercial buildings (including large commercial office and residential buildings under construction), diplomatic facilities, churches, and schools, was occupied by numerous royal facilities. Many of these royal buildings were razed or moved in the late-19th and early-20th centuries. The current Duksoo Palace was built subsequent to our purchase of the American Legation property in 1883. The Korean King moved into this palace in 1897.

Although there has been considerable construction on the site in the intervening years, some experts believe that there might still be remnants of some old foundations left. It is the U.S. Government's policy to document and preserve any historically significant cultural property found on our property during the construction of our facilities overseas. We fully intend to conduct an archaeological survey of this construction site in consultation with the City's Cultural Property Preservation Board before beginning construction.

4. Are you asking for any special exceptions to local laws for your project?

Like other countries that have built, or are planning to build, new diplomatic facilities in Seoul, we have discovered that there are no laws or regulations that specifically cover the construction of Embassy chancery and diplomatic residence facilities. In the past, officials have sought to apply laws that govern construction of commercial apartment complexes, office buildings, mixed-use residential/commercial buildings, etc., to diplomatic projects. It has become evident, however, that the assumptions and requirements of these laws and regulations do not fit diplomatic establishments.

For example, we cannot include in chancery facilities the commercial operations that are governed by current laws and regulation; Embassy residences cannot be offered for sale or rental to non-diplomats; security rules prevent us from putting parking garage under our buildings; and the need for parking spaces is reduced because our Embassy and residence facilities are collocated and, with few exceptions, we do not allow outside vehicles to enter our facilities for security reasons. Also, a few senior diplomatic residences serve an important government representational function and are therefore larger than apartment units normally found in commercial developments in Korea.

Accordingly, we have asked the Korean Government to designate this project as a "diplomatic establishment" with laws and regulations appropriate to such projects. The Korean Government and local authorities have told us that they have repeatedly encountered the same problem in dealing with other countries' diplomatic facilities and also Korean Government buildings and that they are seeking to accommodate these concerns by revising appropriate laws and regulations.

5. Are the plans in compliance with local ordinances regarding height and view-shed requirements?

Both the residence facility and the chancery have been designed in strict accordance with relevant local restrictions and bilateral agreements. In fact, to meet those requirements, the Embassy reduced the number of residential units it had hoped to build on the Chung-dong site by more than one half. Moreover, required security setbacks will ensure that the profile of our new facilities is unimposing. The new chancery and residential building will be considerably smaller than the several large new commercial and residential buildings being constructed in the immediate vicinity. The Embassy residence building will be tasteful and built in such a way that it will generally not be visible from the street to the east of the present compound.

Both the Embassy chancery and the residence will also be constructed to blend in well with the neighborhood's atmosphere and aesthetic, including a large amount of green space. We are building facilities in which we and our families will live and work -- we want them to be beautiful, functional, safe, and a credit to a neighborhood in which we have lived for 119 years.

6. Who is designing your new facilities and what will they look like?

Mr. Michael Graves, one of the world's leading architects, will design our facilities. He is working closely with Baum and Associates, one of Korea's leading architectural firms. Mr. Graves is well known to the Korean architectural community. He visited Korea last year to discuss his design concept with them and with Korean national and local government officials, and visited Korea again this year.

Mr. Graves knows much about Korean architecture, and has indicated his intention to incorporate features of Korean architecture into the project. Examples of this include the plan to continue the beautiful traditional walls on the road behind Duksoo Palace all the way around our new project, to incorporate the wall motif into part of the residence building and chancery, and to work with local authorities to extend the scenic public walkway behind Duksoo Palace. Mr. Graves also plans to allow space to plant trees outside the wall of the new facilities, where currently there are none. These steps will continue the U.S. Embassy's practice of paying tribute to Korean culture in our construction, following the example of the Ambassador's residence, which has won widespread praise for its distinctive use of traditional Korean architectural elements. The result will be not only to preserve but also to enhance the traditional character and atmosphere of the neighborhood.