[This Person] Cha Hyeon-il, Yeongdeungpo-gu Mayor, Why Designated Alley-type Shopping Districts No.1 and No.2?

Designation of No.1 Seonyudo Station Alley Shopping District and No.2 Daerim Central Alley Shopping District Completed... Expected to Revitalize Alley Commercial Areas... Support for Facility Modernization, Management Improvement, Promotion, and Onnuri Gift Certificate Merchant Registration Provided

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jong-il] Cha Hyeon-il, Mayor of Yeongdeungpo District, is actively working to revive small business owners through the designation of alley shopping districts.

Yeongdeungpo District officially launched the alley shopping district revitalization project last month by designating the small business-dense areas of Yangpyeong 2-dong and Daerim 2-dong as the 1st and 2nd alley shopping districts, respectively.

An "alley shopping district" refers to an area within 2,000㎡ where more than 30 stores operated by small business owners are concentrated. Unlike traditional shopping districts, which require that retail and wholesale stores make up more than 50% of the area, alley shopping districts are designated through an application by the representative of the merchant organization and selection by a committee, regardless of business type.

Alley commercial areas, such as food alleyways densely packed with restaurants, have previously been excluded from various support programs compared to traditional markets or general shopping districts. However, through the designation of alley shopping districts, they can now receive diverse support benefits.

In line with the revised Special Act on the Promotion of Traditional Markets and Shopping Districts, the district established an ordinance in December last year to support the revitalization of alley shopping districts in Yeongdeungpo, laying the foundation for activating alley commercial areas.

Subsequently, in February, the district recruited candidate areas for alley shopping district designation and actively promoted the initiative. As a result, Seonyudo Station Alley Shopping District and Daerim Central Alley Shopping District were finally selected as the 1st and 2nd alley shopping districts, marking the first step toward becoming representative commercial areas of Yeongdeungpo.

The 1st Seonyudo Station Alley Shopping District, located around Seonyuro 47-gil, 49-gil, and Yangpyeong-ro 19-gil, is a prime area adjacent to exits 5 and 6 of Seonyudo Station, featuring a high concentration of cafes and restaurants popular among young customers.

Notably, near exit 2 of Seonyudo Station, on the way to Seonyudo Park, a "Walkable Street" has been created, and it is expected that the designation of this alley shopping district will inject new vitality into the nearby commercial area, producing significant synergy effects.

The 2nd Daerim Central Alley Shopping District, located around Digital-ro 37-gil, is in the Daerim station area where subway lines 2 and 7 intersect. It offers easy accessibility and is adjacent to Daerim Central Market, raising expectations that regional economic activity will be further revitalized through mutual cooperation.

Going forward, these two shopping districts will receive various benefits comparable to those of traditional markets or general shopping districts through their designation as alley shopping districts, including ▲environmental improvements to enhance customer accessibility such as shared facilities ▲management improvements and promotions such as joint marketing, joint products, and design development ▲registration as affiliated stores for local currency and Onnuri gift certificates.

The district plans to continue discovering more distinctive alley commercial areas starting with these first and second designations and to prepare various support measures to transform them into places where more people want to visit.

Cha Hyeon-il, Mayor of Yeongdeungpo District, stated, "I hope that the designation of alley shopping districts will help revive the alley commercial areas that have been stagnant due to COVID-19," adding, "We will continue to make every effort to prepare practical measures to support small business owners, including alley commercial areas, to revitalize the local economy."

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