Initially, the city of Medan consisted of villages, often called urban villages, which evolved to form cities. Sukaraja and Hamdan villages are old villages that are part of the Sultanate of Deli and reflect the sociocultural character of the local people of Medan. Now, these villages have grown to the banks of the Deli River. The residents choose to live in riverbank areas that are not well-designed and create unhealthy slums that have social, economic, and cultural problems. These villages will be displaced soon by the discourse of the toll project in the city of Medan on the Deli River. This paper aims to analyze and provide solutions to the problems of the development of slums in the Deli River area. Both environmental, architectural, social, and economic issues of the population. Based on data analysis, the people of Hamdan and Sukaraja villages need livable housing at an affordable cost and can support the community’s economy. This study recommends a vertical village design with an Ecological Architecture approach and integrated with sustainable economic systems. The vertical village design also accommodates the economic empowerment of Sukaraja and Hamdan villagers by developing and integrating businesses that have grown previously in this village.