In general, despite ongoing urban obsolescence and decay, urban regeneration through development became a strenuous challenge due to the economic recession. In the case of Korea, development-oriented urban regeneration has been faced with limitations, and, as a result, Korea’s regeneration policy has been shifting in the direction of focusing on regional characteristics and values. Now is the time to establish appropriate strategies and plans incorporating the unique aspects of Korea, with a shrinkage-accommodating plan towards ill-matched scale and demand as well as low use of space.
Accordingly, a concept of shrinking smart for urban regeneration and its planning direction are newly established in this research based on a relationship with its relevant concepts, such as smart growth, compact cities, and new urbanism, that are found in a paradigm of urban planning. In this research, shrinking smart for urban regeneration is defined as an extended philosophy of existing concepts like smart decline and smart shrinkage, and it is more focused on improving the quality of urban life with less development of population, buildings and land use.