Nonhyeon-dong still most likely site for Lee’s retirement

President Lee Myung-bak’s private residence in Nonhyeong-dong, southern Seoul, is still the most likely site for his retirement home, but he could move to a different place should the plan fail, Cheong Wa Dae said Monday.

As an alternative option, the presidential office is considering a site in northern Seoul or Gyeonggi Province as the plan to move back to the Nonhyeon-dong residence in the affluent Seoul district of Gangnam faces problems including the high cost of establishing security facilities.

Last month, Lee nixed his plan to move to a site in Naegok-dong, southern Seoul, amid allegations that he purchased the housing plot under his son’s name in May to transfer wealth to his child through “unjust, irregular” means.

“His residence in Nonhyeon-dong is still the first option under consideration. We have made much progress on that option. However, we are also reviewing other possibilities to prepare for the worst-case scenario,” Lee’s spokesperson Park Jeong-ha told reporters.

In July 2009, Lee promised to donate all of his assets to help young people from low-income families, except for his residence in Nonhyeon-dong. He said that he would move to that residence after retirement in February 2013.

Cheong Wa Dae has been looking into the possibility of spending his retirement in a different house, as there are many nearby buildings overlooking his property in Nonhyeon-dong and the cost of building security facilities is high.

Officials said that the presidential office was trying to make a final decision over the retirement home site by the end of this year.

“In order to remove unnecessary controversies over the plot of land for his retirement home, we are well aware that we should make a decision on that quickly. There are still many opinions regarding that (within the presidential office), so it is difficult to decide on that right away,” a Cheong Wa Dae official said on condition of anonymity.

Meanwhile, the parliament’s House Steering Committee decided on Nov. 8 to set aside 4 billion won ($3.46 million) to purchase a plot for security facilities and 2.7 billion won to construct them.

By Song Sang-ho (sshluck@heraldcorp.com)