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New Seoul City Hall

Design & Planning | 880,000 SF | Council Chambers | Auditorium | Public Plaza

SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA  KMD won an international design and construction competition for the new city hall in Seoul, South Korea, in partnership with Samoo Architects and Samsung Engineering Construction. The civic structure, which looks onto Seoul Plaza, a central gathering place, will be a visual symbol of the city’s pride. The new City Hall, as envisioned by KMD’s design team, will stand out as a striking, elliptical-shaped, 21-story glass tower with a unique, open form that invites interaction and discovery. As dusk falls, the glowing lights of City Hall will illuminate downtown Seoul creating an enduring beacon for the city’s civic pride and prosperity. The design is a unique prelude to the future of civic architecture, by challenging traditional authoritarian and historical civic building design. It celebrates the notion of “openness” of government through design and creates a sense of place for the community.

With the election of a new mayor of Seoul the city ultimately decided to go in a different direction with the City Hall design.