JONGNO-GU GOVERNMENT COMPLEX

The Jongno-gu Government complex aims to establish an integrated civic platform including a fire station, office, a city council, and a public health facility in the memory of over 600 years of the site. The shape of the building is carved in multiple directions to accommodate three distinctive building programs, to introduce the daylighting deep into the courtyard and interior, and to provide a focal point toward Kyeong-Bok Palace that reflects Korean dynastic history.
Building complex consists of 3 main distinctive programs. The functions overlapped and shared between programs are bound together through a courtyard on the ground level, a Civic platform at the middle and a Civic lounge at the top. Exterior solid wall facing toward the city succeeds to the materiality of historic remains, while the clear curtain wall facing the courtyard promotes interconnected business culture. The courtyard on the ground level accommodates various levels of city fabric, respecting the underground archaeological remains, an old house site of Jeong-Do-Jeon, a prominent scholar-official of Joseon Dynasty, and the industrial heritage, Su-sung elementary school, which is the first reinforced concrete building in South Korea. These historic remnants are incorporated into the present urban fabric and dedicated to the general public. Next, the civic Platform is a common public service center for a fire station and a public health center and administration of the city. The platform not only serves the citizens with civic service programs, but also encourages communications between the departments by providing a co-op business space promoting consilience business culture. Lastly, the civic lounge at the top of the building includes a cafeteria, an exhibition hall, and a sky lounge dedicated to the citizens as a public space. The lounge vertically expands public space of the city of Seoul by conversely expanding the scenery to the historic metropolis.