[Interview] Park Seong-su, Songpa District Mayor: "Relocation of Sampyo Industrial Plant for Restoration of Pungnap-dong Earthen Fort"

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[Asia Economy Reporter Jong-il Park] “We will do our utmost to create a new historical and cultural village where local residents and cultural assets coexist.”

Park Seong-su, Mayor of Songpa-gu, emphasized that the ‘Seoul Pungnap-dong Earthen Fortress Restoration and Maintenance Project’ is an urban regeneration project that revives the beauty of ancient culture and makes local residents the main actors.

Mayor Park said, “You can experience the blue skies and open landscapes found in famous foreign cities here in Pungnap-dong as well,” adding, “The ancient Pungnap Earthen Fortress harmonizes with everyday life today, offering a city skyline that is hard to find elsewhere.”

He especially added, “We are accelerating the relocation of Sampyo Industry to restore a vibrant city and promptly maintain cultural assets.”

In August, Songpa-gu filed a public property delivery lawsuit against Sampyo Industry. The Sampyo Industry Pungnap factory site is a core area of the ‘Seoul Pungnap-dong Earthen Fortress Restoration and Maintenance Project ? West Fortress Wall Excavation and Restoration.’

Mayor Park stated, “A large amount of Baekje pottery, building remains, and road relics were excavated at the site, suggesting that the Pungnap-dong Earthen Fortress was likely the royal palace during the Baekje Hanseong capital period, highlighting the need for protection.”

Accordingly, since 2006, the district has been promoting the relocation of the Sampyo Industry Pungnap factory for the restoration and maintenance project. However, in 2014, Sampyo Industry suddenly refused to cooperate, leading to compulsory acquisition procedures. Subsequently, on February 5, 2016, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport approved the project recognition notice, and on February 28, 2019, the district won the lawsuit filed by Sampyo Industry at the Supreme Court to cancel the project recognition notice.

On January 10 of this year, ownership was finally transferred to Songpa-gu through the Seoul Land Expropriation Committee’s expropriation decision, and Sampyo’s objection to the expropriation decision was dismissed on June 25.

However, Sampyo Industry applied for an extension of the factory site usage permit, which the district denied, resulting in Sampyo Industry unlawfully occupying the factory site since July 1.

The district filed a public property delivery lawsuit against Sampyo Industry on August 31, intending to bring the factory relocation to a close.

In addition to filing this public property delivery lawsuit, the district plans to accelerate measures for factory relocation, including imposing compensation fees for unauthorized occupation of public property.

Mayor Park Seong-su said, “Through this delivery lawsuit, we will strive to ensure that the Sampyo Industry Pungnap factory is relocated as soon as possible and that the cultural asset restoration and maintenance project can be promoted early.” He also stated, “Pungnap-dong was selected as a candidate site for the Seoul-type urban regeneration project last April, recognizing its potential. We will build infrastructure such as a Baekje culture experience village and exploration trails, revitalize the Pungnap traditional market, and create the Pungnap Earthen Fortress cultural street, public library, and cultural center to inject sustainable growth momentum into the region.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.