Jogyuil Jinju Mayor Visits Safety Inspection Site of Old Yeongnam Department Store Demolition Work

Construction of 'Multipurpose Children and Welfare Center' Targeted for Completion by End of Next Year

Mayor Jo Gyu-il inspecting the demolition site of the old Yeongnam Department Store.

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Choi Soon-kyung] Jinju City, Gyeongnam Province, visited the demolition site of the old Yeongnam Department Store, which is being demolished as part of the hazardous building urban regeneration project selected by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport on the 22nd, and conducted a final safety inspection.

The old Yeongnam Department Store, located in Insadong, the original downtown area, opened as a department store in 1991 but ceased operations in 1992 due to poor management and was left as an eyesore in the city center for 30 years. Moreover, in January 2019, a fire caused by an electrical short circuit occurred, turning it into a hazardous building and negatively affecting the nearby commercial district.

Despite these issues, the complex interests of over 120 owners made it impossible to renovate privately, leaving it neglected. However, with the establishment plan of the ‘Jinju City Multipurpose Child and Welfare Center’ in 2020 and its selection as an urban regeneration project in April 2021, Jinju City purchased and began demolishing the site.

The ‘Jinju City Multipurpose Child and Welfare Center,’ to be built after the demolition of the old Yeongnam Department Store, will be constructed at a cost of 24.9 billion KRW, with two basement floors and five above-ground floors, covering a total area of 7,078㎡. It will include child welfare facilities such as an infant play experience room, children’s health dream park, toy bank, and a small library, as well as the Seongbuk-dong Administrative Welfare Center and an 80-space public parking lot. Completion is scheduled for the end of 2023.

Jinju City began demolition on December 30 last year, completed the demolition of the five-story above-ground structure over two months, and is currently finishing site work. The site inspection conducted on the 22nd included listening to residents’ inconveniences caused by the demolition and safety checks.

A city official stated, “By demolishing the old Yeongnam Department Store, which was left as an eyesore in the city center and threatened citizen safety as a dumping ground and crime-prone area, and transforming it into a multipurpose child and welfare center, we will establish a balanced child welfare system across the region.” He added, “Providing much-needed parking spaces for local residents will greatly contribute not only to improving the urban environment but also to revitalizing the original downtown area.”

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