Finding a Solution for Gwangju Civil Airport Relocation Through a 'Citizen Opinion Survey'

Gwangju City Hall

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Park Seon-gang] The Gwangju Metropolitan City Citizens' Rights Committee (Chairman Choi Young-tae) announced on the 14th that it held a plenary committee meeting at the city hall conference room and decided to initiate a public opinion survey to gather citizens' opinions in order to prepare a response plan for the citizen-proposed "Reconsideration of the Relocation of the Private Airport."

The public opinion survey will ▲ask citizens' opinions on relocating the private airport ahead of the military airport in 2021 amid uncertainty about the military airport relocation, ▲be conducted with 2,500 citizens, and ▲be completed by November 10.

The Citizens' Rights Committee decided at the plenary committee meeting on the 17th of last month to form and operate a "Special Committee on Airport Relocation Discussions" for in-depth discussions on whether to link the relocation of the private airport with that of the military airport.

The special committee, composed of citizens' rights committee members, external experts, and city council recommended personnel, held two discussions and proposed to the plenary committee to conduct a public opinion survey asking citizens about the linkage between the private airport relocation and the military airport relocation, and based on the results, to submit policy recommendations to Gwangju City.

A petitioner who proposed through the "Online Democracy Platform BaroSotong Gwangju!" expressed concerns about relocating only the private airport without progress in the military airport relocation discussions, stating that "the private airport relocation should be done together with the military airport relocation."

Additionally, the petitioner pointed out that the military airport relocation project costs 5.7 trillion won, and if it is promoted through a donation and transfer method, it would place a heavy financial burden on Gwangju City, suggesting that a solution be found by gathering the consensus of citizens before proceeding with the relocation project.

Meanwhile, "BaroSotong Gwangju!" stipulates that if a citizen proposal meets the online sympathy (50 people) and discussion (more than 100 people) requirements, the Citizens' Rights Committee will discuss policy implementation plans.

This proposal for "Reconsideration of the Private Airport Relocation" met the requirements quickly after registration due to rapid citizen sympathy and active participation in discussions, leading the Citizens' Rights Committee to deliberate on whether to recommend the policy.

The Citizens' Rights Committee decided to conduct a public opinion survey targeting Gwangju citizens and recommend policy directions on airport relocation based on the results. Prior to the survey, they plan to promote citizen awareness of the airport relocation issue through TV debates, public hearings, and banner installations.

Chairman Choi Young-tae of the Citizens' Rights Committee said, "The issue of relocating the private and military airports is not simply limited to airport facilities but is an important task that can drive the growth engine and future development of the Gwangju and Jeonnam regions, as well as a major topic for coexistence between Gwangju and Jeonnam. Therefore, from the perspective of preparing a future-oriented regional development plan, we will gather citizens' opinions objectively and professionally through a public opinion survey."

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