A nighttime view of Mt. Nam from the rooftop of Sewoon Mart / Korea Times photo by Shim Hyun-chul



By Kim Ji-soo



Looking for relics in the dynamic city of Seoul may be a challenge, especially when commercial and residential skyscrapers are being constructed throughout the city. Residents, developers and government officials are working together to strike the right balance between city development and preservation.

Beyond the streets of Myeong-dong or Insa-dong are landmarks of the city that seem lost in time. One of these landmarks, which the people and the city government have chosen to renovate, is the Sewoon (Sanga) Mart arcade. It is one of the city's oldest commercial and residential buildings, constructed in 1968 under a government-led development initiative. Located in the central district of Jung-gu, the eight-story Sewoon Mart arcade is home to a variety of electronics shops that sell arcade games, cathode ray tube TVs and others.

The newly renovated arcade now has a walk deck on the third floor, linking it to neighboring buildings with similar structures. Various ventures rent its new offices. In September 2017, the rooftop opened to the public.

One wintery Monday afternoon, the few visitors on the rooftop took in the panoramic view to the north, which includes Mt. Bukhan and Jongmyo Shrine, a royal ancestral shrine from the Joseon Kingdom.

A nighttime view of Jongmyo Shrine atop Sewoon Mart's rooftop / Korea Times photo by Shim Hyun-chul



Lee, 70, was one of the visitors that afternoon.

"It's nice to see all the way northward from here, through Jongmyo and Mt. Bukhan," he said. He had stopped by to see what the new rooftop view offers. "This type of space means Korea has come far," Lee said, before leaving for his Chinese language class nearby.

To the east and west of the Sewoon Mart's rooftop are alleyways lined with shanties that appear to host mom-and-pop businesses, another area awaiting redevelopment. Visitors to the rooftop may be surprised to discover such pockets of old neighborhoods in this city. To the south, Mount Nam comes into view.

Byun Yoo-jin, 25, a recent architecture graduate who works in an architecture office in Seoul, was also at the rooftop that afternoon with her friend.

"We came to study Sewoon's architecture, and what has been done to it," Byun said. "Maybe because it's winter, it seems empty. Perhaps more events can take place on the rooftop."

During daytime, a view of old-style building seen from Sewoon's rooftop / Korea Times photo by Kim Ji-soo



After the 1950-53 Korean War, an illegal shantytown occupied the spot until 1968, when it was cleared away for the government-led construction of eight long, narrow mixed-use residential and commercial buildings, giving Seoul a modern face.

After going through ups and downs, in 2016 the Seoul Metropolitan Government began the rehabilitation of the area. In addition to the renovation of the Sewoon Mart building, in 2008 the northernmost tower of the complex, Hyundai Mart, was torn down. Now, a newly opened plaza stands on Hyundai Mart's spot, right across from Jongmyo Shrine.

The city government has been hosting public events such as fashion shows and art festivals in Sewoon Mart's inner courtyard and on its rooftop, and plans to host more.

The city government wants to open to the public the rooftops of the Daelim and Jinyang buildings to the south. Last year, the city government hosted a drone festival on the fifth floor of Cheonggye Mart and is currently preparing to open the 17th floor of the Jinyang Mart building, which is close to Mount Nam. No date has been set for the opening, as it is part of a city rehabilitation project that still requires the residents' and community leaders' consent.

"The idea is to publicly share the rooftop space on these commercial buildings, especially those within four major gates of Sungnyemun (Namdaemun), Heunginjimun, Donuimun and Sukjeongmun, which limits visitors' ability to enjoy city views," said Yang Byeong-hyeon, a city government official.

The walk deck will be extended to the southernmost Jinyang Mart building by 2020.

Another rooftop that is being prepared for public opening is one of the four on the Nakwon Music Arcade building, which was also constructed in 1968. The building's rooftops are on the fourth, fifth, sixth and 16th floors. The 16th floor rooftop offers views of the Constitutional Court, Cheong Wa Dae, Mt. Nam and the new Lotte World Tower in Jamsil.