South Korea to start building Sejong presidential office in August 2027
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South Korean President Lee Jae Myung had expressed his intention to hold his retirement ceremony in Sejong, which is about 120km south of Seoul.
PHOTO: REUTERS
SEOUL – South Korea will begin construction of a presidential office in the administrative city of Sejong in August 2027, the presidential Blue House said on April 14, as South Korean President Lee Jae Myung seeks to ensure the complex can be used within his term.
A tender notice for site construction will be issued on April 15, Blue House communication secretary Lee Kyu-youn told a press briefing.
The site will cover about 350,000 sq m, with site preparation costs estimated at 9.8 billion won (S$8.4 million) and a construction period of about 14 months, he said.
The secretary said Mr Lee Jae Myung had expressed his intention to hold his retirement ceremony in Sejong, which is about 120km south of Seoul, and had instructed officials to ensure the project proceeds without delay.
The Blue House is also holding a design competition for the new presidential office, with a winning proposal to be selected by the end of April, followed by about a year of design work before construction begins in August 2027, Mr Lee Kyu-youn said.
In December 2025, Mr Lee Jae Myung moved the presidential office back to the country’s traditional Blue House compound in central Seoul, departing from the defence ministry complex where his ousted predecessor Yoon Suk Yeol had set up his office.
Mr Lee Jae Myung had pledged during his June 2025 presidential campaign to build a second presidential office and a National Assembly building in Sejong and to complete his term in the city.
He said expanding the presidential presence in Sejong would promote balanced regional development, help ease soaring housing prices in Seoul and fulfil a long-standing pledge to complete South Korea’s administrative capital.
The Blue House said the goal is for the South Korean President to move into the Sejong office by August 2029, adding that whether it would replace the Blue House as the main presidential office would require broader public consensus and possibly legislative steps.
Sejong was created in 2012 to relieve congestion in Seoul and already hosts most government ministries, though the presidency remains based in the capital. REUTERS
