Park Kyum-su, Gangbuk-gu Mayor, Awarded for Renovating Harmful Businesses Around Schools

Complete Eradication of 180 Youth Harmful Businesses Over 6 Years: A Community Effort... Appreciation Expressed to 19 Distinguished Residents and 5 Related Agency Officials

[Asia Economy Reporter Jongil Park] Gangbuk-gu (Mayor Park Kyum-soo) awarded certificates of commendation on the 16th to residents who contributed to completely eliminating harmful businesses around schools that negatively affect youth.

A total of 24 people received commendations that day. They included 19 residents belonging to the Harmful Business Eradication Promotion Council and 5 officials from the Gangbuk Police Station and Seongbuk-Gangbuk Office of Education. All of them share the common achievement of leading efforts over six years to eliminate 180 harmful businesses.

Harmful businesses refer to establishments registered as regular restaurants but actually operating in an inappropriate manner. Known as “red houses” due to provocative signs and suggestive red lighting, these places threatened the safety of school routes. Consequently, there was a strong demand for improving the educational environment.

When Gangbuk-gu launched the project to completely remove harmful businesses around schools, residents rolled up their sleeves to join the effort. Six neighborhood promotion councils were formed, focusing on areas densely populated with harmful businesses. These councils continuously carried out campaigns with parents and students to completely eradicate harmful businesses. Banners reading “We want school routes free of harmful businesses” were consistently displayed in front of stores.

This harmful business eradication movement began in 2015 when Gangbuk-gu, the Office of Education, and the police station joined forces. These institutions formed a working council and conducted joint crackdowns.

Residents also participated in inspections. The district formed a dedicated team that conducted nighttime crackdowns more than once a week on a regular basis. The total number of crackdown days reached 300, with over 5,000 operations conducted.

In addition to crackdowns, the district simultaneously persuaded building owners and business operators. They visited each establishment to encourage business conversion and provided support such as counseling and job placement. Among the businesses that closed entirely, 44 were persuaded to shut down. To prevent a vicious cycle of temporary closures followed by reopening, the district monitored these businesses for three years.

Ultimately, all 180 harmful businesses disappeared from school routes and surrounding alleys. The former locations of these businesses have been replaced by pharmacies, regular restaurants, convenience stores, coffee shops, and more. The district continues to conduct on-site inspections of vacant spaces after closures to prevent harmful businesses from reappearing.

Mayor Park Kyum-soo of Gangbuk-gu said, “The complete removal of harmful businesses around schools is a result achieved by the united efforts of residents and related organizations in the community. We will continue to work to create a clean and safe school route environment so that children can attend school with peace of mind.”

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