Family Vacation Spot Busan Songdo Auto Camping Site to be 'Closed' This Summer... Conflict Intensifies Between Seo-gu and Operator

After 4 Years of Operation, Contract Terminated at End of June, Dispute Over 'Restoration' of Camping Site Facilities

Operator: "Losses Due to Following COVID Policies, Why Demolish Essential Bid Facilities?"

Seogu District: "As Public Prope

Location map of Busan Songdo Auto Camping Site.

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Kim Yong-woo] The Songdo Auto Camping Site, which became popular as an urban family vacation camp after opening four years ago at the end of Busan Songdo Beach, will not be welcoming vacationers during this summer peak season.

This is because the existing operator has withdrawn, leading to conflicts between the district office and the operator over the dismantling of internal facilities.

Busan Seo-gu Office initiated friction between the two parties by issuing an administrative order for restoration to the original state to the operator who decided to close the Songdo Auto Camping Site due to COVID-19 and other reasons.

The camping site operator, Ratec Co., Ltd. Busan Songdo Auto Camping, decided to suspend operations with a deadline set for June 30 and requested contract termination to Seo-gu in March.

The camping site’s operation contract is renewable annually for up to five years. After the contract ends, a new operator is selected through bidding.

The Seo-gu Office’s Culture and Tourism Division, which manages the facility, escalated the conflict by issuing an administrative order for “restoration of facilities according to the obligation to return the property” in response to the operator’s contract termination request.

The restoration of the entrusted property includes essential camping facilities and bidding conditions such as the management building, group seating, deck canopy equipment, and food waste processors.

After the contract expires on June 30, the new operator must wait for the existing operator’s dismantling work and spend an additional 2 to 3 months reinstalling the same facilities before resuming business.

This is why citizens will not be able to use the camping site during this summer peak season.

The original “Shared Property Use and Profit Permission Conditions” agreement between the operator and Seo-gu states that when the entrusted period expires or permission is canceled, the camping site must be returned after restoration to its original state.

However, it also includes a condition that restoration is not required if the restoration of the property is unnecessary for its intended use or if installation was approved by the district office.

Currently, Choi Jung-sam, CEO of Songdo Auto Camping Site, the current operator, complained, “I cannot understand Seo-gu’s position on why they want to cause costs and waste issues by dismantling usable facilities.”

This is a backlash against the demand to dismantle essential camping facilities that do not need to be touched, even though only outdated facilities need to be newly installed when a new operator is selected.

Seo-gu insists on “restoration to the original state” according to the Shared Property Act and is demanding the operator submit a restoration plan based on this.

If the obligation is not fulfilled, Seo-gu plans to carry out the restoration first and charge the costs to the trustee.

The operator counters, saying, “These are facilities that must be installed again as long as the camping site exists,” and that “the conditions fall under those where restoration is unnecessary.”

They argue that these facilities are essential conditions without which bidding for operator selection is impossible.

They claim that Seo-gu is using administrative authority to make both the existing and new operators incur additional costs for matters that could be resolved through consultation between the current and next operators.

The camping site stated, “Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we followed government guidelines, suffered business losses, and had to suspend operations, but Seo-gu is breaking the agreement and demanding dismantling of even facilities that do not require restoration, which is absurd,” expressing their intention to pursue legal action.

A Seo-gu official said, “The operator has yet to submit a detailed plan for facility restoration requested by the district office since March,” adding, “If they do not provide a dismantling plan, there is no option other than restoration.”

Seo-gu plans to hold the operator accountable for the mid-term termination of the consignment, restrict bidding participation qualifications, and impose administrative sanctions after a hearing process.

Due to the conflict over dismantling the camping site facilities between Seo-gu and the operator, vacationers will likely have to remove Songdo Auto Camping Site, which had become a family travel landmark, from their summer vacation list this year.

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