Geumcheon-gu's First Urban Regeneration Company 'The Geumha Cooperative' Established

[Seoul District News] Geumcheon-gu Begins Active Efforts for Community Building and Job Creation... Yongsan-gu Forms and Operates Road Facility Resident Safety Inspection Team... Gangdong-gu Hosts Gangdong Eoulmadang Showcasing Excellent Social Enterprise Products... Dobong-gu Accepts Applications for 1,700 Eco-Friendly Box Gardens from March 28 to April 6... Gangnam-gu Supports Village Community Resident Project with Up to 5 Million KRW... Gwangjin-gu Produces L-Shaped Holders for Easy Promotion of Local Income Tax Electronic Filing and Payment Methods...

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jong-il] Geumcheon-gu (Mayor Yoo Seong-hoon) announced the establishment of Geumcheon-gu’s first urban regeneration enterprise, ‘The Geumha Energy Transition Cooperative’ (hereinafter referred to as The Geumha Cooperative).

‘The Geumha Energy Transition Cooperative’ (Chairperson Oh Hee-ok) is composed of residents participating in the Geumha Village urban regeneration project in Doksan 1-dong.

The Doksan 1-dong Geumha Village Urban Regeneration New Deal Project was selected in 2018 as part of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport’s “Our Neighborhood Living Type” contest and is scheduled to be completed by December this year.

Geumcheon-gu has invested 12.5 billion KRW to create ▲a self-sustaining village together ▲an energy-independent village ▲a joyful ecological village ▲a comfortable and safe village by building community facilities, renovating old houses, improving green environments, expanding village entrances and exits, and more, aiming to improve residents’ quality of life and promote sustainable urban regeneration.

The Geumha Cooperative plans to manage community facilities created as part of the urban regeneration project and provide services such as home repairs to residents.

Additionally, it is preparing to develop and sell various local specialty products such as eco-friendly hand sanitizers and detergents, and organic soybean paste. Through this, it aims to create jobs in the village and reinvest in the community to sustain urban regeneration.

Meanwhile, Geumcheon-gu was highly recognized for expanding the base of urban regeneration by establishing the first urban regeneration support center among Seoul’s autonomous districts in 2019, and received the grand prize at last year’s ‘Korea Urban Regeneration Industry Expo.’

Yoo Seong-hoon, Mayor of Geumcheon-gu, said, “The Geumcheon-gu urban regeneration village enterprise No. 1, ‘The Geumha Cooperative,’ will be the driving force to continue urban regeneration even after the project ends,” adding, “We will continue to actively work to revitalize low-rise residential areas by fostering community formation and job creation.”

Yongsan-gu (Mayor Seong Jang-hyun) has formed and started operating a ‘Resident Safety Inspection Team’ to actively promote the prevention of major citizen disasters related to road facilities under the Serious Accidents Punishment Act.

On the 17th, the district designated residents living near 12 road facilities including road bridges, road tunnels, and road retaining walls as safety inspection officers.

On-site training for the safety inspection team will be conducted until the end of March. The training will cover key points to check according to the characteristics of the facilities and how to report if risks are identified.

Kim Gwang-sook (Huam-dong, 65), safety inspection officer for Dodakdari Bridge and Saemal Bridge, said, “After the on-site training, I clearly understood the key points to check. Although Saemal Bridge was maintained only two years ago and looks safe, I will frequently check the non-slip surfaces on the steep stairs and the railings as they are easily damaged.”

From April, the safety inspection team will visually check the safety status of public facilities within their daily living radius. If any risk factors are found, they will immediately report to the person in charge and submit quarterly inspection reports.

Public officials responsible for major citizen disasters will promptly take action after reviewing the risks reported by the safety inspection team and the contents of the regular inspection reports.

Road safety management facilities in the area include ▲Ichon-dong (Ichon Overpass) ▲Huam-dong (Dodakdari Bridge, Saemal Bridge) ▲Cheongpa-dong (Seogye Bridge) ▲Yongmun-dong (Baekbeom Bridge) ▲Hangangno-dong (Yongsan No.1 & 2 Retention Ponds, Sin Yongsan Underpass) ▲Itaewon-dong (Itaewon Elementary School retaining wall) ▲Hannam-dong (retaining walls in front of Hannam foreigner housing, northern end of Hannam Bridge, Hannam-dong 772-1) ▲Yongmun-dong (Hyochangwon-ro retaining wall).

Seong Jang-hyun, Mayor of Yongsan-gu, said, “Prevention activities are fundamental to avoiding accidents. If residents become safety inspectors and watch over the facilities, we can cover places we might miss and immediately identify and respond to real-time risks,” adding, “We thank those who take the time for the safety of all residents.”

In January, the district established a Serious Accident Prevention Team to protect the lives and bodies of citizens and workers and formulated a comprehensive plan for serious accident prevention. In February, based on this plan, safety plans for preventing major citizen disasters by facility were established.

Gangdong-gu (Mayor Lee Jeong-hoon) will hold ‘Gangdong Eoul Madang’ on the 26th in the open yard in front of the district office to open sales channels for excellent social enterprises.

‘Gangdong Eoul Madang,’ held from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., will feature about 20 companies including social enterprises, preliminary social enterprises, village enterprises, social cooperatives, cooperatives, and Angel & Darak Workshop resident companies located in Gangdong-gu.

This event was prepared to support local social economy enterprises that have suffered sales damage due to the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic. It is expected to be a meeting place to showcase excellent products to local residents, secure sales channels, and promote regional coexistence.

Participating companies will sell popular daily necessities currently trending on social media such as tufting accessories, various accessories, bags, and pet clothing. In addition, diverse and interesting experience programs such as succulent plant cultivation, candle, air freshener, and pet toy making will be operated.

Cheerful spring events are also prepared. A busking performance will start at 11:30 a.m. to provide a healing time while listening to spring songs, and family-friendly events such as dalgona candy making, Squid Game photo zone, and stamp tours will be held.

For inquiries, contact the Gangdong-gu Social Economy Support Center for detailed information.

Dobong-gu (Mayor Lee Dong-jin) will distribute 1,700 sets of ‘Eco-friendly Box Gardens’ that allow easy cultivation of crops at home. The application period is from March 28 to April 6.

‘Eco-friendly Box Gardens’ can be applied for by Dobong-gu residents or organizations located in Dobong-gu such as educational institutions and public institutions. Each person can apply for up to two sets (duplicate applications within the same household are not allowed). Priority will be given to individual applicants, and remaining sets will be distributed to organizations.

Applications can be submitted on the Dobong-gu website from 9 a.m. on March 28 to 6 p.m. on April 6. If the number of applicants exceeds the supply, recipients will be selected by computer lottery. The results will be announced on April 13 on the Dobong-gu website.

Selected applicants must pay 20% of the purchase price to confirm their eligibility. The fee is 8,000 KRW each for Type A (50L, size 65×43×40cm) and Type B (50L, size 65×45×75cm).

The district plans to individually deliver the box garden sets to the addresses entered during application starting from the end of April.

The box garden set consists of a garden box, soil, seedlings, wheels, and a user manual. Vegetables can be grown by filling the garden box with soil and planting seedlings, and water management is easy using a wick irrigation method.

Lee Dong-jin, Mayor of Dobong-gu, said, “Box gardens are very popular among residents because even beginners can easily plant and cultivate seedlings with just a veranda, rooftop, or small leftover space. I hope people heal their minds and bodies tired from COVID-19 and grow healthy food through box gardens.”

Gangnam-gu (Mayor Jung Soon-gyun) will recruit 35 teams to participate in the ‘Village Community Resident Public Project’ from March 29 to April 12, providing 2 million to 5 million KRW per team. The project operation period is until October.

The Village Community Resident Public Project supports activities where residents directly plan, propose, and execute projects needed in the village to solve local issues and common problems. Eligibility requires a group of 3 to 5 people residing or having a living area (workplace, school, etc.) in Gangnam-gu.

The project fields include social problem solving (voluntary agenda/environmental district/community childcare/single-person households) and regional specialization (residential environment/Daechi 4-dong resident groups), totaling six categories, prioritizing projects with high public interest. Simple hobby or socializing projects are excluded. Applications can be submitted online at the Seoul Village Community Comprehensive Support Center.

Additionally, the district will provide pre-consultations from March 28 to April 11 for residents having difficulty writing project plans. After downloading and filling out the form from the district website, residents can contact the Village Community Team in the Resident Autonomy Division of Gangnam-gu Office to receive help from village support activists.

Im Dong-ho, head of the Resident Autonomy Division, said, “Residents know best what projects the village needs,” adding, “We will actively support residents to discover and promote village community projects through voluntary exchanges.”

Gwangjin-gu (Mayor Kim Sun-gap) will produce and distribute L-shaped holders (A4 document holders) for easy understanding of electronic reporting and payment methods for local income tax.

The front of the L-shaped holder contains information on electronic reporting and payment methods for special withholding tax items, which have many manual payments monthly, along with a QR code for direct access.

Special withholding local income tax refers to the tax withheld and paid by employers who withhold 10% of the income tax withholding amount when paying wages to employees.

Electronic reporting and payment can be done by accessing the internet payment system WeTax or Seoul’s eTax, selecting ‘Report and Pay,’ then ‘Local Income Tax (Special Withholding).’

For Gwangjin-gu businesses, it is also possible to report online conveniently through the ‘Gwangjin-gu Special Withholding’ KakaoTalk channel.

The back side provides explanations on comprehensive income, capital gains, corporate income, special withholding, and guides on the filing periods for each tax item to help overall understanding of local income tax.

The newly produced L-shaped holders will be mailed to local businesses that pay manually and tax agents, and will also be available at the tax civil service office for any interested residents.

For other questions about electronic reporting of local income tax, contact the Tax Division 2 of Gwangjin-gu Office.

Kim Sun-gap, Mayor of Gwangjin-gu, said, “By producing and distributing these holders, we aim to increase understanding of local income tax, and the holders will be useful in daily life.”

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