Gov’t mulls easing site regulations to increase silver towns

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The South Korean government is considering easing site regulations to increase the number of silver towns for the elderly as the population ages rapidly.

According to sources on Monday, the government recently held a meeting with officials from life insurance and construction companies to discuss easing location regulations for silver towns.

At the meeting, the participants reportedly proposed a plan to allow silver towns to be built on leased private land while requesting financial support for their construction.

Under the current enforcement regulations of the Welfare of Senior Citizens Act, a care facility operator must own the land or building directly to set up a care facility for more than 30 people. While it is possible to lease public land, leasing private land is not allowed.

The participants also expressed concerns about the significant cost burden of purchasing land to build silver towns, especially in the metropolitan area where there is a high demand for silver towns, but most companies cannot afford to purchase land in the area. There is also a shortage of public land available for lease in the metropolitan area.

“The current regulations were created to prevent the indiscriminate establishment of silver towns, but the situation has changed now,” Korea Insurance Research Institute (KIRI) President Ahn Chul-kyung said. “With our rapidly aging population, there is a high demand to build silver towns in the metropolitan area, but the initial costs are excessively high under the current system, placing a significant burden on companies.”

The government is reportedly considering easing construction site requirements and plans to form a task force to revitalize the supply of silver towns as early as February 2024 to begin relevant discussions.

“Given that initial project costs to build silver towns are high in the metropolitan area, we believe that it is necessary to reduce the burden on the industry,” a government official explained. The task force will discuss not only construction requirements but also allocating silver town sites in large-scale housing projects, using idle school facilities, and maintaining silver town residents’ eligibility for housing pensions.