Gwangju Seo-gu, Complex Community Center 'Seobitmaru' Opens on the 28th

Published 26 Jun.2023 11:24(KST)

Seo-gu, Gwangju Metropolitan City (Mayor Kim Ikang) will open the complex community center ‘Seobitmaru,’ where cultural, welfare, and educational services can be enjoyed in one place, on the 28th.

Seobitmaru Center Photo [Photo by Seogu]

Seo-gu announced on the 26th that it has built a complex community center including a cultural center, senior center, and library on a 5,595㎡ site with four floors above ground at Pungam Sports Park, and will hold an opening ceremony on the 28th to begin full-scale operation.

Earlier, Seo-gu selected the name ‘Seobitmaru’ for the center through a public contest.

Seobitmaru is a compound word of Seo-gu’s “bit” (light) and “maru” (floor or platform), meaning a space where the lives of local residents are enriched and active communication takes place through various cultural services.

The Seobitmaru Cultural Center will operate a professional performance hall with about 300 seats, providing local residents with opportunities to enjoy high-quality culture such as family musicals, piano recitals, and concerts.

It will also run programs that local residents can participate in and enjoy, such as basic musical theater education and family orchestra instrument lessons. In particular, on the 28th, the opening commemorative first performance will be the ‘Musical Gala Concert’ featuring Korea’s representative musical actors Nam Kyungjoo and Jung Seungwon.

The Seobitmaru Senior Center supports healthy and active senior life by providing various information and services related to cultural and hobby activities and social participation, and operates customized programs necessary for health promotion and disease prevention.

It will also operate a senior cafeteria that can serve more than 300 people a day and provide shuttle bus service circulating within Seo-gu to support convenient transportation.

The operating hours are from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on weekdays, and it is closed on weekends and public holidays.

The ‘Lifelog Health Management Center,’ jointly operated by Samsung Seoul Hospital and Sungkyunkwan University, is located here, providing AI healthcare services for real-time health monitoring and strengthening chronic disease prevention and management for local residents.

The Seobitmaru Library operates ‘Chaekmaru’ for reading and ‘Sangsangmaru,’ a resting space with relaxation, music, and communication.

The library’s operating hours are from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on weekdays and from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekends. It is closed on the second and fourth Mondays and on legal holidays.

The library is planning various participatory programs through in-depth discussions with local residents and benchmarking advanced cases. As part of the opening events, there will be a lecture by author Chae Sajang, who wrote the bestseller ‘Wide and Shallow Knowledge for Intellectual Conversation,’ and an exhibition called ‘Hello Dal Author’s Room,’ which offers a look into the creation process of the popular children’s picture book bestseller ‘Watermelon Swimming Pool.’

▲ A performance by the Green Night Band ▲ Bookbinding ‘My Hand, My Book’ with family ▲ Wax diorama ‘The World I Create’ ▲ Traditional mother-of-pearl grip talk making event will also be held.

Kim Ikang, Seo-gu Mayor, said, “I hope Seobitmaru will become a cultural hub that connects all generations from children to seniors,” adding, “We will enhance the quality of life for local residents and provide services that offer small but certain happiness (sohwakhaeng) through program planning that reflects Seo-gu’s unique colors and characteristics.”