Yongsan Itaewon Street Brightens Up

Published 08 Jun.2020 07:05(KST)

Updated 08 Jun.2020 07:06(KST)

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Yongsan-gu Implements Enhanced Street Cleanliness Measures in Itaewon Area... Sidewalk Water Cleaning (4 Times Monthly) and 365 Cleanliness Task Force (6 Members) Operate in Itaewon Tourism District from June to October... Private Sector Leads Disinfection and Places 'Clean Itaewon' Stickers on Storefront Glass

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jong-il] Yongsan-gu (District Mayor Seong Jang-hyun) will implement measures to strengthen street cleanliness in major downtown areas such as Itaewon Tourist District and Gyeongridan-gil for five months from June to October.

This is to create a clean urban environment and revitalize the local atmosphere, which has been stagnant due to the spread of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19).

The district will first conduct sidewalk water cleaning four times a month within the Itaewon Tourist District. Street cleaning companies and the district’s facility management corporation will work together. The workforce consists of 8 people: 4 street cleaning janitors, 2 public workers, and 2 water cleaning vehicle drivers, with 2 water cleaning vehicles deployed.

Rather than simply spraying water, workers will directly use detergent and cleaning brushes to remove old grime from the pavement.

The district also operates a 365 Clean Rapid Response Team (6 members) in the Itaewon Tourist District and Gyeongridan-gil area. Working hours are daily from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m., and the main work sections are ▲ World Food Street (Itaewon-ro 27ga-gil) ▲ Vietnam Quy Nhon Street (Bogwang-ro 59-gil) ▲ Ewha Market Street (Bogwang-ro 60-gil) ▲ Usadan-ro 14-gil.

Additionally, the district will replace old street trash bins in the Itaewon Tourist District that detract from the cityscape. Depending on damage and aging, 26 out of 38 bins (70%) have been prioritized for replacement. The replacement model is a fixed square stainless steel trash bin, designed with a ‘triangular pyramid’ shape on top to minimize foreign matter accumulation.

The district has also strengthened illegal dumping crackdowns throughout the entire district, including Itaewon. Local waste collection companies such as Daeseo Environment and Samsung Environment attach ‘collection refusal’ notices to improperly sorted waste. Then, the district office and community center inspection teams conduct on-site investigations and impose fines on the waste producers. The number of dedicated illegal dumping enforcement personnel increased from 4 to 6. In the first half of the year, the district recorded 515 enforcement cases with fines totaling 37.9 million KRW.

While the district leads cleaning efforts, disinfection is driven by the private sector. Over 100 merchants belonging to the Itaewon Tourist District Association conducted large-scale disinfection three times from May 20 to June 4. They mainly cleaned store entrance door handles and multi-use facilities, and placed ‘Clean Itaewon’ stickers on store front windows.

The district also focuses administrative efforts on supporting self-employed business owners. First, it plans to provide survival funds of 700,000 KRW per month for two months (total 1.4 million KRW) to self-employed entrepreneurs who started before September 1, 2019, and had annual sales under 200 million KRW last year (or under 100 million KRW if operating less than 6 months). Applications are accepted online (May 25 to June 30) or offline (June 15 to June 30). However, businesses that are closed, entertainment establishments, gambling, nightlife, speculative, or other unhealthy industries are excluded from support.

Furthermore, the district plans to overcome the local economic downturn through ▲ rent reduction campaigns ▲ loans for small and medium enterprises, small business owners, and youth enterprises ▲ issuance of Yongsan Love Gift Certificates ▲ employment retention subsidies for unpaid leave workers ▲ support for reopening stores visited by COVID-19 confirmed cases.