Opening of the Resident Healing Space on the 1st Floor of Nowon-gu Office Building

Enjoy over 2,500 Books Leisurely with a Cup of Tea at the Open Book Cafe... A Book Playground for Children, a Healing Space with Music and Views Featuring an Elevated Platform and a Small Stage

[Asia Economy Reporter Jong-il Park] Nowon-gu (Mayor Oh Seung-rok) remodeled the district office building and officially opened it on the 28th.

With this remodeling, a total of 1,627.7㎡ of the first-floor lobby and the basement cafeteria of the district office have been transformed into resident-friendly spaces. In particular, the first-floor lobby of the district office, which had only served as a passageway, has been created as a cultural complex space, attracting attention.

Benchmarking excellent domestic cases and dedicating two years from design to construction, it is expected to be reborn as a healing resting place and a cultural communication space for residents.

□ Increased openness through expanded ceiling height and full glass windows

First, the overall structure was changed by modifying the existing second-floor terrace of the main building to expand the ceiling height of the first-floor lobby, thereby increasing the sense of openness. The front is composed of glass windows to enhance lighting and interior effects, and sliding doors were installed at the front of the building to connect the exterior and interior spaces, creating a wide and pleasant spatial feeling.

□ Open library, book caf?, indoor flower beds

The first place that catches the eye upon entering the first floor is the open library, which utilizes the lobby walls as bookshelves. About 2,500 books, including new releases, popular books, children’s books, and civil service encyclopedias, are available. They can be freely read without any separate borrowing procedures.

The book caf? located in the center of the lobby attracts attention with a long wooden table and sophisticated interior design. It plans to offer signature menu items using top-quality roasted coffee beans. The caf? is operated by the Nowon-gu Senior Happiness Corporation, contributing to job creation within the local community.

Indoor flower beds installed on both sides of the lobby to purify fine dust add visual enjoyment with various plants such as Hallabong trees, tangerine trees, camellia trees, bougainvillea, Ficus benjamina, sweet osmanthus, Hong Kong palm, and money tree (Manlihhyang).

□ Unique spaces: children’s book playground and elevated platform

The children’s book playground (Chaekteo), a space for kids, also draws attention. It is equipped with bean bag sofas and play areas, with floor heating and rounded edges to ensure children can enjoy safely and comfortably. Additionally, an idea worth noting is the arrangement of tables along the playground space so that guardians can watch their children while drinking tea or reading books.

The elevated platform is a unique space located higher than the first-floor lobby but lower than the district office’s second floor. Just like gathering on the elevated platform in front of a supermarket during childhood to chat or lying on the platform in the front yard to imagine, this place serves as a resting spot to temporarily put aside busy schedules and relax.

It offers a view of the entire first floor and is equipped with audio equipment such as a turntable, LP records, and headphones for enjoying music. The LP records will be rotated and replaced periodically in sets of 15.

Additionally, a small stage for small-scale performances has been installed to provide cultural programs such as small concerts and book concerts, and an exhibition hall for small and medium-sized enterprise products has been set up to support promotion and sales channels.

Along with this, the cafeteria located in the basement was also remodeled. Reflecting social changes, a solo dining table space was newly created, and the total number of seats was increased to allow more comfortable use. The district plans to allow not only employees but also residents to use the cafeteria, offering high-quality meals at reasonable prices.

Mayor Oh Seung-rok said, “The district office, which was just a part of a government office, has been reborn as a space where residents share their daily lives,” and added, “We will continue to strive to expand healing spaces for residents so that anyone can enjoy rest and culture even for a moment amid busy daily life.”

Nowon-gu (Mayor Oh Seung-rok) held the ‘District Office 1st Floor Cultural Rest Area Opening Ceremony’ at the first-floor lobby of the district office at 3 p.m. on the 28th.

The district office, which had only served as a passageway inside the building, was reborn as a space for residents on the first floor.

Main facilities include an open library with about 2,500 books, a book caf?, a children’s book playground, an elevated platform for music listening, an exhibition hall for small and medium-sized enterprise products, and a small stage for small-scale performances.

The ceiling height was raised to increase openness, and the front was designed with full glass interiors to enhance lighting effects.

The event was attended by Mayor Oh Seung-rok and local residents, proceeding in the order of progress report, presentation of appreciation plaques, guest congratulatory speeches, commemorative tree planting, ribbon cutting, commemorative photo session, and facility tour.

Mayor Oh Seung-rok said, “The first floor of the district office has been reborn as a healing space for residents where they can read books, drink tea, and listen to music,” and added, “I sincerely thank all residents for enduring the inconveniences during the construction period.”

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