Changwon Special City Declares "Restoration of the Value of Masan Bay Coast Enjoyed by Citizens"

Mayor Hong Nampyo:
"Enhancing Accessibility and Connectivity to the Sea
to Reconnect Citizens with the Masan Bay Coast"

The sea in front of Masanhappo-gu, Changwon, Gyeongnam, is about to undergo a massive plan that will return the sea to the citizens with a new appearance.

On the 20th, Changwon Special City declared the “Restoration of the Value of Masan Bay Coast” to reconnect Masan Bay, which has become distant from citizens due to indiscriminate reclamation and development, and to restore it as a sea enjoyed by the citizens.

Hong Nampyo, Mayor of Changwon Special City, is declaring the restoration of the value of Masan Bay coastline.

On this day, before declaring the restoration of the value of Masan Bay coast, Hong Nampyo, mayor of Changwon Special City, diagnosed the current situation of Masan Bay based on the functions of the sea.

Mayor Hong said, “The sea is a treasure trove of marine resources and has logistics and recreational functions, but in the case of Masan Bay, due to the aftereffects of indiscriminate reckless development over the past 100 years, accessibility to the sea and connectivity of the coast have disappeared, sacrificing the recreational function. As a result, Masan has degenerated into a ‘city with a sea but no coast,’” diagnosing the current situation of Masan Bay coast and emphasizing the need to restore the sea so that citizens can enjoy it by improving accessibility and connectivity.

He then cited examples of world-class port cities, saying, “In the cases of Minatomirai 21 in Yokohama, Japan, and HafenCity in Germany, artificial coastal paths have been created, and cultural and leisure facilities have been concentrated around the coast to strengthen accessibility and connectivity to the sea.”

Minatomirai 21 in Yokohama, Japan, with participation from public, private, and nonprofit organizations, has created a large central park (Nihonmaru Memorial Park) to connect the city center and coastal promenade, and installed waterfront walkways and pedestrian decks along the coastline, attracting many companies and people today.

In HafenCity, Germany, a 10.5 km-long waterfront promenade is planned to be completed by 2030, along with several cultural facilities such as the Elbphilharmonie Concert Hall, International Maritime Museum, and cruise terminal either already established or planned.

Aerial perspective of the future blueprint of Masan Bay.

Mayor Hong Nampyo of Changwon also presented three proposals to realize the restoration of the value of Masan Bay coast.

The main content of the proposals is, first, to strengthen accessibility and connectivity to the sea. By utilizing piers and other structures, citizen-friendly waterfront spaces will be created to improve accessibility to the sea, and individual waterfront spaces will be connected and linked by bridges, pedestrian walkways, and roads to improve connectivity.

Next is the three-dimensional integrated urban planning of the city and the sea to leap forward as a world-class port city.

Relocation of existing waterfront facilities that reduce accessibility and connectivity will be reviewed, and a new landmark of Masan visible from anywhere in the city will be created. In particular, landscape lighting will be installed along the coastline centered on the landmark to create a world-class night view attraction.

Finally, the restoration of “Masan, the city of water,” where rivers and the sea meet. The covered urban rivers in Masan will be restored to enhance citizen utilization, and by restoring the waterways flowing from the urban rivers to Masan Bay, the ultimate goal is to recreate Masan as a city of water.

Changwon City, which also unveiled the “Future Blueprint of Masan Bay” (a bird’s-eye view), plans to proceed with the restoration of Masan Bay’s value through sufficient communication and consensus among citizens, experts, and related organizations under the unified vision of “Reconnecting the Sea and Citizens.”

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