Changwon Civic Group Demands Former Mayor Apologize for Favoritism Toward Sahwa and Daesang Park Operators

Former Mayor Heo's Side: "No Special Treatment Given, Just Criticizing the Previous Mayor"

Civil organizations in the Changwon area of Gyeongnam demanded an explanation and apology from former Changwon Mayor Heo Seong-mu regarding the private development special project of Sahwa and Daesang Parks, and urged an investigation into the related parties.

The Barun Value Practice Movement Headquarters and the Love for Nation Association held a press conference in front of Changwon City Hall on the 13th, stating, “Former Mayor Heo must directly explain and apologize for the preferential treatment given to private developers revealed in the audit of the Sahwa and Daesang Park private development special project.”

The Barun Value Practice Movement Headquarters and the Nara Love Association are holding a press conference in front of Changwon Special City Hall, Gyeongnam.
[Photo by Lee Seryeong]

They claimed, “Recently, Changwon City announced the interim audit results of the Sahwa and Daesang Park private development special project, revealing that the department in charge of the project provided preferential treatment to private developers under the mayor’s policy,” and added, “This preferential treatment was given under the direction of former Mayor Heo.”

They emphasized, “According to the Park and Green Space Act, the developer must purchase the entire park area and then donate it to the city, but due to concerns over the deterioration of the private developer’s business viability and to facilitate smooth project progress, the purchase of public land was exempted, causing a financial burden of 105.1 billion KRW.”

The organizations stated, “Changwon’s public land belongs to the 1.02 million citizens of Changwon and is an asset for all of us,” and added, “This should not be dismissed as a political ploy or political strife for the general election. Former Mayor Heo and those involved in the project must be thoroughly investigated, and anyone found to have violated laws or gained unfair benefits should face legal punishment.”

The former mayor’s side rebutted, “Announcing an interim audit result on a matter that is not completely concluded and whose outcome could change is nothing but an attack on the former mayor.”

They said, “It is unthinkable that former Mayor Heo, who has consistently argued that urban park development should be public, not private, gave preferential treatment to private companies. If he intended to give preferential treatment, the Bansong and Gaeumjeong Parks would also have been developed privately.”

Status map of private development special projects for Sahwa and Daesang Parks. [Data provided by Changwon Special City Hall]

Earlier, on the 9th, Changwon City announced the interim audit results of the Sahwa and Daesang Park private development special project, stating, “Although private developers should have purchased the public land owned by the city included in the park area, the department in charge exempted the purchase of public land as a preferential treatment under the former mayor’s policy.”

According to the city, the private development special project must be carried out based on the Park and Green Space Act, where private developers purchase the land and develop it, then donate at least 70% of the total area to the city. However, only 68.66% of Sahwa Park and 54.76% of Daesang Park were donated.

The city said, “Due to the exemption of public land purchase for concerns over the private developer’s business deterioration and smooth project progress, Changwon City has incurred a financial loss of approximately 28.7 billion KRW from the Sahwa Park project and 76.4 billion KRW from the Daesang Park project, totaling 105.1 billion KRW.”

Status of Private Development Special Project for Sahwa and Daesang Parks. [Data provided by Changwon Special City Hall]

It was also reported that when the Sahwa Park project plan was changed, it was agreed that part of the increased profits of the private developer, including public contributions, would be attributed to the city, but this was not reflected in the amendment agreement.

At the time of signing the project amendment agreement, the return of 10 billion KRW in profits proposed by the private developer was omitted from the agreement, leaving the possibility of a 10 billion KRW financial loss and unnecessary friction with the private developer in the future.

The city plans to complete the audit of the Sahwa and Daesang Park projects by the end of this month, take internal measures against related parties if problems are confirmed, demand recovery plans for financial losses from the responsible department, and decide on disciplinary actions and requests for investigation of related parties.

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