By Kim Tae-jong
Staff Reporter
Lee Chung-hyoup, an office worker in Seoul, often goes up to the rooftop garden of his company building. During short breaks, he can refresh himself along with his colleagues and even holds casual meetings there, sometimes bringing lunch boxes. The rooftop has become his favorite place.
``The rooftop used to be a closed space with a sign saying `off limits' and air conditioner fans turning around,'' Lee said. ``But now it has become a sort of oasis for us where we can briefly break free from our stuffy office full of computers.'' He works for the Korea Testing & Research Institute in Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul.
Lee's company building has transformed its empty rooftop into a garden with grass on the floor and various trees.
To make Seoul greener, the city government has been encouraging building owners to build rooftop gardens as one of its ``green Seoul'' projects since 2002.
``Many studies show that green rooftops can save energy in cooling and heating by up to 17 percent while also making buildings and the cityscape look much better,'' Choi Hyoun-sil, deputy director of landscape division at Seoul Metropolitan Government, said. ``We try to make more parks and greens in the city but the high prices of land here make it much harder. Rooftop gardens are a quick and easy solution.''
The city government gives subsidies to building owners for the construction of rooftop gardens, up to 70 percent of the total budget, and offers information through public conferences and its Web site https://green.seoul.go.kr.
Such rooftop gardens are more favored in public organizations with more broader accessibility to the public.
Wolgok Welfare Center opened a garden for local residents last May.
``We didn't have enough space for visitors to take a rest but it was almost impossible to construct a new building,'' Kim Min, facility manager of Wolgok Welfare Center, said. ``But the rooftop garden has become a valuable space for us.''
Kim said the center opened an outdoor swimming pool for kids during the summer and now offers various programs and lectures there for residents.
``To have a rooftop garden and manage it are a different issue. So, I guess it is also quite important to keep it properly for residents,'' he said.
A rooftop garden can be also used not just for offering a space for a break.
Eunpyeong Hospital has built a green rooftop at its building for therapeutic purposes for its patients.
``The garden can help patients stay in an emotionally comfortable condition and have a positive mind,'' said Kim Mi-young, a therapist at the hospital. ``The green environment is especially helpful for those suffering from depression.''
Kim, who is studying the function of greens in therapeutic uses for her doctorial thesis, speaks highly of the rooftop garden