Seoul is about to receive its very own elevated park created from an overpass originally built in 1970. In 2006, safety inspectors deemed the overpass to be unsafe and the city planned to demolish and rebuild it. But further consultation with the city’s residents led to the idea of transforming the overpass into a pedestrian walkway, and a design competition was launched in 2015. Netherlands-based MVRDV won the competition with its Seoul Skygarden design.
Park won-soon, Seoul’s Mayor, has described Seoul Skygarden, which will open in April, as a place where “nature and humans can live side by side,” according to qz.com.
And it seems as though there will be a heavy emphasis on the nature aspect of this nature/human interaction as the elevated park will feature 24,000 plants (including trees) labeled and organized in “neighborhoods” along the overpass in Korean alphabetical order. The plants will represent 254 species native to South Korea.
The park will provide aesthetic beauty and a nice strip of greenery through the city, but will have a practical function, as well. Seoul Skygarden will provide a shortcut through the city, turning a 25-minute walk around Seoul Station into a 10-minute stroll. Cafes, performance stages, street markets, and flower shops will be integrated among the thousands of plants.
As night falls, the park will transform with blue lighting from tree pots and lampposts bathing the path while the plants are lit up separately. As Winy Maas, Co-Founder or MVRDV says, rather poetically, on the firm’s website, the lighting will create an effect “as if you’re walking in a cosmos, and all the plants will be lit as if they are the stars, which, they are.”
The park will stretch for 938 meters and will allow for other green spaces to connect to it in the future. Eventually, MVRDV envisions the park becoming an urban nursery growing trees and plants for surrounding districts.
The project is expected to cost Seoul $33 million.
Rendering courtesy of MVRDV.
Rendering courtesy of MVRDV.
Rendering courtesy of MVRDV.
Rendering courtesy of MVRDV.
Related Stories
Green | Feb 15, 2024
FEMA issues guidance on funding for net zero buildings
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) recently unveiled new guidance on additional assistance funding for net zero buildings. The funding is available for implementing net-zero energy projects with a tie to disaster recovery or mitigation.
Green | Jan 8, 2024
DOE releases RFI on developing national definition for a Zero Emissions Building
The Department of Energy released a Request for Information (RFI) for feedback from industry, academia, research laboratories, government agencies, and other stakeholders on a draft national definition for a Zero Emissions Building.
Sustainability | Dec 22, 2023
WSP unveils scenario-planning online game
WSP has released a scenario-planning online game to help organizations achieve sustainable development goals while expanding awareness about climate change.
Green | Dec 18, 2023
Class B commercial properties gain more from LEED certification than Class A buildings
Class B office properties that are LEED certified command a greater relative benefit than LEED-certified Class A buildings, according to analysis from CBRE. The Class B LEED rent advantage over non-LEED is about three times larger than the premium earned by Class A LEED buildings.
Codes and Standards | Dec 18, 2023
ASHRAE releases guide on grid interactivity in the decarbonization process
A guide focusing on the critical role of grid interactivity in building decarbonization was recently published by ASHRAE. The Grid-Interactive Buildings for Decarbonization: Design and Operation Resource Guide provides information on maximizing carbon reduction through buildings’ interaction with the electric power grid.
75 Top Building Products | Dec 13, 2023
75 top building products for 2023
From a bladeless rooftop wind energy system, to a troffer light fixture with built-in continuous visible light disinfection, innovation is plentiful in Building Design+Construction's annual 75 Top Products report.
Codes and Standards | Dec 11, 2023
Washington state tries new approach to phase out fossil fuels in new construction
After pausing a heat pump mandate earlier this year after a federal court overturned Berkeley, Calif.’s ban on gas appliances in new buildings, Washington state enacted a new code provision that seems poised to achieve the same goal.
Green | Dec 11, 2023
U.S. has tools to meet commercial building sector decarbonization goals early
The U.S. has the tools to reduce commercial building-related emissions to reach target goals in 2029, earlier than what it committed to when it signed the Paris Agreement, according to a report by the U.S. Green Building Council.
Industry Research | Dec 9, 2023
Two new reports provide guidance for choosing healthier building products
The authors, Perkins&Will and the Healthy Building Network, home in on drywall, flooring, and insulation.The authors, Perkins&Will and the Healthy Building Network, home in on drywall, flooring, and insulation.
University Buildings | Dec 8, 2023
Yale University breaks ground on nation's largest Living Building student housing complex
A groundbreaking on Oct. 11 kicked off a project aiming to construct the largest Living Building Challenge-certified residence on a university campus. The Living Village, a 45,000 sf home for Yale University Divinity School graduate students, “will make an ecological statement about the need to build in harmony with the natural world while training students to become ‘apostles of the environment’,” according to Bruner/Cott, which is leading the design team that includes Höweler + Yoon Architecture and Andropogon Associates.
