Yongsan Park is the project to turn land returned from US Forces Korea into a national park. Because the permitted uses and the development procedure are set out in a dedicated statute, the common reading is that adding residential use would require legislation.

Behind the review is the shortage of housing for young people in central Seoul. With few large sites of comparable centrality available, the land has been raised as an option for lifting the pace of supply.

Objections followed immediately. Critics say the grounds for reversing the park decision are thin, and note that soil remediation on the returned land is still under way. The completion of that work determines when construction could realistically begin.

The Yongsan district is one of the areas of central Seoul where the ethnic Chinese community has a presence. Nearby shops, schools and places of worship have kept their locations for decades, so the direction of a large development plan can reshape the surrounding neighbourhood.

The presidential office stressed that this is a review stage. No unit count, location or construction schedule has been released.