I've been posting a lot about this new group called the Urban Land Institute (ULI) Korea - Young Leaders Group (YLG) and have been pretty excited about it since it is the first official attempt in South Korea to bring together like-minded young professionals under the age of 35 to talk about urban development and real estate related issues that affect the natural and built environments we live in. I am especially excited because I have never met another group of people as passionate as the team we've assembled to help make this simple idea a reality. One of the great things about our group is that we're from all over the globe and can speak over 3 languages: English, Korean, and German as we have natives from London, Germany, Korea, and of course the U.S. In the upcoming fall and winter months we will be working together to program a number of fun and intellectual events to bring together the urban planning, real estate development, and design community in Seoul. I personally invite anyone living in Seoul with a passion for meeting others and the built environment to come to our first event which will be held in the beginning of this September. We are planning a launching party somewhere in Gangnam, Itaewon, City Hall, or Yeouido, so be sure to keep up with us on Facebook since we will be releasing the event details between August 17 - 24. We look forward to seeing everyone soon! 화이팅!~ | Steering Committee Kick-off Meeting (7/28/2013) The TeamFrom left to right:
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Check out my new article on Reurbanist that discusses the differentiating factors between the U.S. suburbs and the Korean suburban development model. Growing up in Long Island, NY and traveling to Seoul's suburbs for numerous occasions really opened my eyes to how different urban places can be developed and what that may mean for the people living or working there.
Key questions that are asked / answered:
Article link: http://reurbanist.com/2012/09/korean-suburbs-a-great-place-to-live/ One of my friends is looking for another person to share 3 person studio around Noksapyeong station! Feel free to check out the space below and contact her for inquiries or any questions relating to rent and things like that :)
Check out the PPT below in full screen by clicking the icon at the bottom right of the document!
Floor Plan / LayoutVideo OverviewAs I was at work today, I couldn't help but take a picture of this ad that I found in a newspaper sitting in our employee lounge. The advertisement pictured left advertises several high rise residential towers in all their glory [pictured dramatically against the sky/sun background). It also highlights the apartment's proximity to a subway station and of course a beautiful(?) Korean woman. The ad also shows an 8-10 lane highway crossing the page with no other aspects of the neighborhood present (other than a couple people walking along the lifeless sidewalks). [additional renderings can be viewed on the leasing website for the Noble Land - for your reference, one is pictured below] I found this picture interesting from a planning perspective since the advertisements themselves paint a vivid picture of the types of street environments these colossus residential developments create along the public realm (aka the street). In my next article for Reurbanist (that will be published soon), I'll take a deeper look at the Korean suburb to show how exactly they may be the similar if not different from American suburbs. Development rendering of Noble Land, the apartment complexes that are advertised in the above newspaper. It appears they do not blend well with the surrounding community as tree-lined greenery creates a clear separation between the public realm and the private development.
I recently read about the first "gamer" bar that opened in Paris called Meltdown, a bar that boasts several projection screens that are readily accessible to broadcast the most intense e-Sports coverage and gaming computers that are prepared (free of charge) to battle your friends for others in the bar to see - games played are broadcasted through the televisions and projection screens in the bar. As an avid gamer and advocate of e-Sports, why can't "gamer" bars be more common? Simple - there isn't enough data to support the need and want for such an abstract concept. Or is there? After working for a retail development firm in Seoul over the past year, I've been exposed to a number of concepts for future shopping malls that include open spaces that resemble NYC's Highline Park, gentlemen's lounges, and more. While each concept has their own target audience, I've noticed there hasn't been much attention for a retail and entertainment concept that targets younger males aged 18 - 30's, a group that typically hates spending time shopping (especially when they are forced to go "shopping with her." Just for my own personal research, take a look at the short presentation I've prepared (currently not 100% - if you have any feedback or comments to improve the quality of the presentation, please feel free to comment!) and take the quick survey below. Thanks! CommentsRecently, I just published my first article on Reurbanist, a website dedicated to analyzing and critiquing how retail can re-invent our built environments.
I refined/polished my first Wyandanch Rising article and added additional content that analyzed the key lessons and success factors of the project since the project is considered a benchmark in sustainable development by the U.S. Green Building Council as a LEED-ND project. Please feel free to read the article in its entirety here and submit comments or feedback: http://reurbanist.com/2012/04/revitalization-case-study-wyandanch-rising/ |