Yongsan District Mayor Seong Jang-hyun Launches Historical and Cultural Renaissance Project

Designation of Hangangno 3-ga 65-154 and 181 Other Parcels as Ministry of SMEs and Startups Regional Specialized Development Zone... 51 Billion KRW Investment by 2024... Promotion of Four Major Specialized Projects Including 'Urban History Hub Establishment'

Historical Museum Exhibition Design Presentation Meeting

Location Map of Yongsan-gu Regional Specialized Development Zone

[Asia Economy Reporter Jongil Park] Yongsan-gu (Mayor Seongjang Hyun) has been newly designated as a regional specialized development zone by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups.

The district plans to actively create local income and jobs over four years until 2024 through an investment of 51 billion KRW (27 billion KRW national funds, 11.8 billion KRW city funds, 16.4 billion KRW district funds, 20.1 billion KRW private funds) and the application of regulatory exemptions.

The special zone is named the "Yongsan Historical and Cultural Renaissance Special Zone."

It covers 578,866.7㎡ including 181 parcels such as Hangangno 3-ga 65-154. The four main specialized projects are ▲ Establishing an urban historical hub ▲ History and culture permeating daily life ▲ Expansion and linkage of historical and cultural content ▲ Discovery of historical and cultural jobs.

The district will first focus administrative efforts on establishing urban historical hubs such as the Yongsan History Museum (Hangang-daero 14-gil 35-29). The old Yongsan Railroad Hospital building, a registered cultural property (No. 428), will be renovated (partial interior repair without structural changes) and repurposed as a local history museum. Construction will start in the first half of this year and the museum is scheduled to open in the first half of next year.

A district official said, "Since establishing the museum construction plan in 2017, we have proceeded with hiring curators, forming a museum construction advisory group, acquiring museum materials, and conducting feasibility evaluations by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism," adding, "The exhibition design service has also been completed."

In addition to the Yongsan History Museum, the district will bundle related facilities such as the National Museum of Korea, the National Hangeul Museum, and the Lee Bong-chang Activist History Hall to develop and operate tour programs.

The history and culture permeating daily life project includes "Digitalization (Archive) of Yongsan-gu's Future Cultural Assets," "Yongsan-gu Modern and Contemporary History Experience Program," and "Fostering and Supporting the Yongsan Cultural Center." In particular, the district has invested 200 million KRW to complete the archive installation and will disclose the results to residents this month.

The district is also carrying out projects to expand and link historical and cultural content, such as creating themed specialized streets. Existing projects include the Itaewon World Food Street (Itaewon-ro 27ga-gil), Vietnam Quy Nhon Street (Bogwang-ro 59-gil), and Hannam-dong Cafe Street (Itaewon-ro 54-gil), and plans to newly create a museum-specialized street around Seobinggo-ro.

Furthermore, the district plans to create 431 quality jobs through training professional historical and cultural guides and young interns for the history museum, promoting and selling traditional Korean crafts, and a campus town project centered on history and culture.

The designation of Yongsan as a regional specialized development zone is a key pledge of the 7th local government administration. The mayor established the policy in 2019 and went through procedures including public hearings and application for designation.

With this special zone designation, the district will receive regulatory exemptions under five laws including the Road Traffic Act, Road Act, and Building Act. The production inducement effect of the project is 66.2 billion KRW, and the income inducement effect is 9.4 billion KRW.

Seongjang Hyun, Mayor of Yongsan-gu, said, "The future of the region lies in cultural tourism projects," adding, "We will create numerous culture-related service industries, activate external investment, and lead a sustainable virtuous economic cycle."

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