Everyone Welcome! ... September 15, Gyeongnam Governor's Official Residence Door Opens Wide

Governor Park Wansu's Key Pledge Fulfillment, Creation of a Complex Cultural Space for Residents

Gyeongnam Governor's Official Residence.

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Lee Seryeong] One of Governor Park Wansu's key pledges, the ‘Return of the Governor’s Official Residence to the Residents,’ will be implemented on the 15th of this month.

Gyeongnam Province plans to initially open the governor’s official residence in Seongsan-gu, Changwon City, as it currently stands starting from the 15th of this month, and later decide on content and remodeling directions by reflecting residents' opinions.

According to the province, the public opinion gathering on the utilization plan for the governor’s official residence, conducted by the 8th-term Gyeongnam Governor’s transition team from June 8 to June 30, showed that the majority of opinions favored creating a cultural space.

Since July, the province has been collecting residents’ opinions and consulting experts, including artists, lifestyle culture club members, the younger generation, youth culture planners, and public architects, to transform the governor’s official residence into a complex cultural space for residents.

Based on the collected opinions, the residents’ house will be developed as a youth-sentiment cultural space linked with Garosugil, the governor’s official residence will be a place for enjoying everyday culture and arts, various lifestyle content, and a lifestyle culture art space, and the surrounding hills will be developed into a trail and forest cultural space.

Gyeongnam Residents' House.

The creation of the complex cultural space will be carried out in phases.

In the first phase, the province will open the current facilities as they are so that residents can freely enjoy rest and culture.

Indoor spaces and outdoor gardens will be provided first to allow residents to use the content they desire, and planned exhibitions tailored to youth interests will be held concurrently.

The indoor space will be open from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m., and the outdoor space from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., with closures every Monday.

In the second phase, a comprehensive master plan will be established to set the theme of the complex cultural space, and remodeling and facility repair work will be carried out.

The province plans to maximize residents’ opinions to create a major open resident space in Gyeongnam Province and increase its utilization, and during the remodeling period, programs using the outdoor garden will be operated.

A provincial official said, “Since the opening of the residents’ house in December 2008, several remodeling projects have required significant budgets, but it has not fulfilled its role as a space for residents. Before investing in facilities, we will first open the current facilities as they are and operate programs while reflecting residents’ opinions to decide whether to proceed with remodeling.”

After the full opening in the third phase, programs that allow participation by residents such as design exhibitions, pop-up stores, and art markets involving young artists, professional artists, and lifestyle culture clubs will be expanded, and media art and exhibitions inviting famous artists will also be possible.

Gyeongnam Province plans to develop the residents’ house and the surrounding hills of the official residence into a trail, creating a resting space in the city and a forest cultural space.

Public parking lots will be installed using nearby idle land, and mid- to long-term tasks will include adding crosswalks to improve accessibility and expanding bus services for youth and visitors to secure transportation convenience.

The province will hold an explanatory meeting with residents and experts at the residents’ house on the 23rd to explain the site conditions and project plans and to collect opinions to be reflected in the overall master plan of the complex.

To commemorate the opening of the official residence, a youth art exhibition inviting young artists will be held from the 14th until October 3, and webtoon festivals and music festivals will also be held afterward.

Governor Park Wansu said, “We will first return the current facilities to the residents as they are and create an open complex cultural space loved by youth and residents through communication and opinion gathering.”

Anyone can apply to rent the official residence and residents’ house by contacting the Gyeongnam Residents’ House guidance and management department of the Provincial Office’s Autonomous Administration Bureau or through the provincial website banner or email.

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