A Seoul court has put the brakes on the capital government’s plan to build a sightseeing gondola over the landmark Namsan. 

The Seoul Administrative Court on Friday sided with Namsan Cable Car which filed a lawsuit against the Seoul Metropolitan Government last September after Seoul rezoned land for the project from an urban nature park zone to an urban planning facility park.

The court accepted the cable car operator's claim that the rezoning decision was illegal as it had failed to meet the conditions for land-use designations under the city’s ordinance on parks and green areas.

Seoul city had sought the change as the site it was aiming to build the gondola is a zone where installing facilities is banned.

The court's decision comes after it accepted the cable car operator's request last October to temporarily suspend the validity of the Seoul government's change of land use until a court ruling was out. 

The Seoul government said it will immediately appeal the court decision.