North Korea appears to be preparing to officially open the latest “Hwasong Area” residential skyscraper project earlier than expected, possibly ahead of the Ninth Party Congress opening, according to NK Pro analysis of satellite imagery.

A new construction worker camp has also appeared on the grounds of the demolished “mini-Pyongyang” park in recent days, a sign that the next phase of leader Kim Jong Un’s housing plans in the capital may commence regardless of discussions at the party congress.

WRAPPING UP 5-YEAR PROJECT

Planet Labs imagery shows hundreds of existing worker camp tents and structures have been removed near the site of the 2025-26 skyscraper project since Feb. 3. 

Construction of a possible stage for an opening ceremony also started at the new roundabout in front of the Pyongyang Zoo around Feb. 7.

The ceremony may celebrate just the 10,000 homes built under the final Hwasong Area project phase, but it could also include an additional 2,500 homes on Saebyol Street (also spelled Saeppyol) built for the families of soldiers killed in the Ukraine war. Construction on Saebyol Street started later.

DPRK leader Kim Jong Un kicked off his 50,000-home project in spring 2021, vowing to build separate 10,000-home projects in the capital each year for five years. The first year saw an 80-story skyscraper and other towers built on the new Songhwa Street in southeast Pyongyang, while the next four years’ construction were in the Hwasong Area in the northeast. 

Songhwa Street took 13 months to finish, from March 2021 to April 2022. The next three years of the five year plan each took 14 months to complete, with Kim attending groundbreaking ceremonies each February and opening ceremonies around former leader Kim Il Sung’s April 15 birthday each year. 

If a ceremony is held before the congress — scheduled to begin in “late February” — it would be two months earlier than the four previous years, possibly a reflection of improved economic conditions leading to an ability to furnish buildings more quickly.

However, it is difficult to confirm whether all homes are truly ready to house residents at the time of their official openings, which have been timed to coincide with leader-related holidays for propaganda purposes.

An upcoming ceremony could also be framed as coinciding with the Feb. 16 birthday of former leader Kim Jong Il.

Breaking precedent to open the final phase of construction two months early — just to ensure it is presented as a success within the current five-year plan and before initiating a new one at the congress — would raise suspicions over whether the interiors of all buildings are finished.

North Korean authorities have mobilized tens of thousands of young civilians and conscripted soldiers to live and work on these sites for the duration of construction, typically resulting in the handmade skyscrapers materializing within a matter of months.

Furnishing buildings with elevators and imported appliances has appeared to take much longer. Delays appeared in the early years of the project when Pyongyang still maintained a ban on most imports under pandemic lockdown rules. However, the economy has since rebounded and North Korea now appears to have little trouble importing machinery and other items banned by U.N. sanctions.

The DPRK last visited the site to check its progress last month, revealing it will include another new private car dealership and PC gaming center.

UNINTERRUPTED CONSTRUCTION

One year ago, Kim Jong Un announced where his grand capital housing construction plans were headed after the conclusion of the 50,000-home project.

Now, it appears that workers on the ground are following those plans as a new camp has started to materialize in one such location on the road east of Saebyol Street and west of Songmun-dong, Samsok District, Planet Labs imagery shows.

Clusters of tents began to appear between Feb. 3 and 6 on the grounds of the Pyongyang Folklore Park, which has been mostly abandoned since Kim Jong Un had it demolished in 2016, four years after opening.

Construction does not seem to have started on new apartment towers in the area, and Kim is likely to attend a groundbreaking ceremony before most of the major work begins.

The apparent preparations come after Kim said last February that he wanted his plans to be finalized at the upcoming Ninth Party Congress.

The latest imagery shows that efforts have not yet begun to demolish three slum-like neighborhoods Kim condemned for redevelopment a year ago.

Edited by David Choi