I think some clarification is necessary: If South Korean government were really serious about addressing the problem of over-centralization of Korea (hint: the

I think some clarification is necessary: If South Korean government were really serious about addressing the problem of over-centralization of Korea (hint: the present administration isn't), they wouldn't have built yet another new city reachable by Seoul's subway system. In contrast, the construction of Sejong city (pioneered by the late president Roh Moo-Hyun) was fraught with legal/political objections from conservatives, who were worried that such a move would undermine their traditional position of power (and potentially do something to finally stabilize the housing market of Seoul, though that's rather far-fetched). The struggle culminated in our own Constitutional Court declaring the original Sejong project (which wanted to make it the new capital of governance) as unconstitutional, on the grounds that it would be against Gyeongguk Daejeon, the "constitution" (or close equivalent) of our dead Joseon dynasty (1392-1910). (Yep, these guys were desparate, and had the backing of half South Koreans, so "being logical" wasn't a high priority. So went the chance of building a balanced nation...) Needless to say, none of these guys raised any objection in building Songdo: unlike Sejong, Songdo poses no danger to any established political power, and it might even serve as a convenient way to funnel tons of money into construction companies.