Naju Mayor Kang In-gyu Goes All Out to Secure Next Year's National Budget

[Naju=Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Kim Yuk-bong] Kang In-gyu, mayor of Naju, Jeollanam-do, recently conducted on-site administrative visits with budget officers including the head of the Planning and Budget Office, meeting with members of the National Assembly’s Budget and Accounts Committee and local district lawmakers.

According to the city on the 16th, Mayor Kang recently visited the offices of lawmakers Kim Won-i, Yang Hyang-ja, Kim Hyung-dong, Seo Dong-yong, Shin Jeong-hoon, and Seo Sam-seok in succession, requesting special attention and support to ensure that major local projects are reflected in next year’s national budget.

The proposed projects include four items: ‘Establishment of a Foundation for Revitalizing Local Communities’ (9 billion KRW), ‘Installation of Wastewater Final Treatment Facilities for Naju Innovation General Industrial Complex Phase 1-2’ (5.8 billion KRW), ‘Improvement Project for Livestock Manure Public Treatment Facilities’ (4.5 billion KRW), and ‘Construction of an Energy-ICT Convergence Knowledge Industry Center’ (26.1 billion KRW).

The Life SOC Complex Center is a cultural and community facility for children, one of the long-awaited projects in Bitgaram Innovation City. It gained momentum after being selected in September for the ‘2021 Life SOC Complex Project,’ a public contest hosted by the Prime Minister’s Office.

The city plans to invest a total of 15.8 billion KRW, including national funds, to build a child (family)-specialized Life SOC Complex Center on 1,325㎡ of city-owned land in Bitgaram-dong 383 (next to LH Complex 2 apartments) with a total floor area of 6,300㎡ by 2023.

The center will be a four-story building above ground with one basement floor, housing on the first floor a ‘Local Food Coexistence Food Market’ where fresh agricultural products from production areas can be purchased, and on floors two to four, a ‘Children’s Themed Library,’ ‘Childcare Support Facilities,’ ‘Together Care Center,’ and ‘Agricultural Product Experience Center.’

Mayor Kang requested active support to ensure that the ‘Establishment of a Foundation for Revitalizing Local Communities’ project (under the Ministry of the Interior and Safety), which includes the agricultural product direct market and childcare support facilities as part of the Life SOC Complex Project, is confirmed and reflected in the government budget proposal.

The ‘Wastewater Final Treatment Facilities Phase 1-2 Project’ is a plan to expand the public sewage treatment facility (404-1 Dongsu-dong) due to increased wastewater treatment capacity needs following the completion of the Naju Livestock Products Wholesale Market within the Innovation Industrial Complex and early occupancy by tenant companies.

The improvement of the aging Naju Livestock Manure Public Treatment Facility is also an urgent matter.

The livestock manure treatment plant, first operated in 2003, was improved in 2013 to enhance pretreatment and secondary treatment processes.

The city has been maintaining and repairing the facility annually with its own budget, but the current facility has limitations in treating high-concentration livestock manure, causing odor complaints from residents of nearby villages such as Jeongryang and Jinpo.

Moreover, since a large-scale apartment complex of about 450 households, including Ichang Happy Housing and Adelium Apartments, is scheduled to be built in 2023, securing national funds next year for facility improvements is critical.

The center, with a total investment of 26.1 billion KRW (16 billion KRW national funds, 4 billion KRW provincial funds, 6.1 billion KRW city funds), will be located on a 13,264㎡ site (total floor area 14,200㎡) in the Innovation Industrial Complex, with one basement and four above-ground floors, providing 25 rental industrial facilities (factory type) for small and medium-sized enterprises related to the new energy industry in the second half of 2022.

Mayor Kang In-gyu said, “Tireless on-site administrative efforts toward central government ministries and the National Assembly are a very important responsibility as a local government head to determine the securing of next year’s national budget.” He added, “The projects proposed this time are key to improving urban living conditions and enhancing citizens’ quality of life, so we will prepare meticulously to ensure that national budget is secured.”

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