Mayor Kim Donggeun: “Supporting Everyday Spatial Innovation... Advancing Toward a Walkable, Stayable Cultural City”

[Feature] Uijeongbu City Unveils “Our Neighborhood Policy Roadmap: Singok 1-dong”
Major Enhancements to Everyday Convenience Infrastructure Centered on the “Music Garden”
Focusing on Improving Citizens’ Daily Lives Through “Open Administration” and “Spatial Innovation”
Jungnangcheon Emerges as a Seasonal Scenic Attraction... Music Library at the Heart of the “Music Garden”
Redevelopment of Aging Residential Areas and Creation of a Pedestrian-Friendly Living Zone Connecting Balgok Station Area

On November 28, Uijeongbu City in Gyeonggi Province (Mayor Kim Donggeun) announced the release of the “Our Neighborhood Policy Roadmap: Singok 1-dong Edition,” which organizes information on administration, infrastructure, welfare, and culture closely related to citizens’ daily lives at the local level. The changes in Singok 1-dong are rooted in “open administration” and “spatial innovation,” with a focus on improving the daily lives and residential environment of citizens.

Policy Roadmap for Singok 1-dong. Provided by Uijeongbu City

‘Everyday Convenience Infrastructure’ Closest to Daily Life

The living environment in Singok 1-dong is being thoroughly improved, centering on infrastructure that residents can tangibly experience.

The Singok 1-dong Community Service Center, which relocated to a new building last year, has transformed its entire first floor into an open, shared space called “Majushelter,” equipped with ▲an exhibition area ▲a cafe ▲a children’s play area ▲and a residents’ meeting room. “Majushelter” is intended as a place where residents can sit together, communicate, and relax.

The exhibition area serves as a stage for residents to showcase their own works as part of everyday cultural activities, while the cafe is operated in connection with the Senior Club’s elderly job program, encouraging participation and communication among local seniors. The children’s play area is open at all times, providing a daily rest space where guardians and children can naturally spend time together. The residents’ meeting room is widely used for small gatherings and resident communication through advance reservations.

With these diverse functions seamlessly integrated into one space, the community center is evolving beyond a simple administrative office into a “neighborhood lounge” where residents can comfortably visit, interact, and stay.

The opening of annex parking lots has also been expanded to alleviate parking inconveniences in residential areas. Singok 1-dong Catholic Church (425-2 Singok-dong) has opened its 22-space parking lot since January of this year, making it available 24 hours on weekdays and during certain hours on weekends, thus helping to ease parking difficulties for residents.

Support functions for children have also been enhanced. The “Together Care Center No. 12,” which opened last July in the E-Pyunhansesang Singok Park Prime complex, provides after-school care services for children aged 6 to 12, Monday through Friday. It operates from 1 p.m. to 8 p.m. during the school term and from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. during school vacations, substantially reducing care gaps for dual-income families.

Additionally, the “Maple Leaf Playground No. 2” created in Haneulbit Children’s Park is a themed space reflecting children’s opinions. Featuring various physical activity facilities completed with Nexon’s social contribution, it was highly rated and selected as an “Excellent Children’s Playground” by the Ministry of the Interior and Safety this year. As a representative leisure space for local children, it is further enhancing the quality of life in the area.

Play area for children at Singok 1-dong Community Center. Provided by Uijeongbu City

‘Landscape and Cultural Infrastructure’ Elevating the Quality of Culture and Leisure

The river and park landscapes throughout Singok 1-dong are continuously expanding as everyday gardens that offer diverse sights year-round. In particular, the walking trails along Jungnangcheon have become even more established as leisure spaces in residents’ daily lives, with seasonal landscaping enhancements.

This year, a 14,300-square-meter buckwheat flower field was created between the pedestrian bridge and Balmul Rest Area, and about 10,300 square meters of yellow cosmos flower paths were also arranged in areas such as Hyoja Station to Buyonggyo Bridge, Dongshin Apartments to Sindong Elementary School, and Sinuigyo Bridge to the Music Library. These have become signature seasonal landscapes along Jungnangcheon in the autumn.

Alongside these river landscapes, the Uijeongbu Music Library serves as the cultural hub of Singok 1-dong. Opened in June 2021 within Balgok Neighborhood Park, the music library houses over 16,000 music materials-including LPs, CDs, DVDs, and sheet music-based on the local cultural asset of “Black Music.”

The entire space is designed to naturally connect reading, music appreciation, creation, and performance, with an open stage and book zone on the first floor, a community room and book zone on the second floor, and a CD/LP/DVD zone, music hall, audio room, and composition studio on the third floor.

Breaking away from the stereotypical library atmosphere, its open space design featuring hip-hop graffiti, along with a variety of music performances and hands-on programs, has made it a beloved local cultural hub where communication and creation through music are part of everyday life.

Uijeongbu Music Library. Provided by Uijeongbu City

Transformation into a Walkable, Stayable Living Area: Music Garden and Residential Environment Redevelopment

The city is pursuing the creation of the “Uijeongbu Music Garden,” which connects the music library, Balgok Station on the light rail, Balgok Neighborhood Park, and Jungnangcheon into a single living cultural route.

This project was planned to attract the steadily increasing number of visitors to the music library and the surrounding floating population, and to create a pedestrian-friendly living area where parks, rivers, and station areas are seamlessly connected.

The first phase focused on improving accessibility. The park entrance was renovated and walkways expanded, with fences that blocked the flow of users and structures that obstructed views removed. This has created an open foundation where anyone can more easily access the park and music library. Aging structures and signboards near Balgok Station were also improved to further enhance pedestrian flow.

The second phase is concentrating on establishing a living pedestrian axis connecting the park, river, and station area. Improvements to the walking environment around Balgok Neighborhood Park and the installation of crosswalks near Balgok Station have already been completed, and enhancements to the river access road connecting the music library and Jungnangcheon are underway.

At the same time, redevelopment of aging residential areas is being carried out in stages. Jangam District 6 within Singok-dong (351-8 Singok-dong, 16,735 square meters) is preparing for integrated review for project implementation approval after the establishment of a cooperative in July last year, and is expected to be redeveloped into a residential complex of 399 households. Once the project is underway, improvements to basic living infrastructure and pedestrian environments, as well as overall residential environment upgrades, are anticipated.

Adjacent to Singok 1-dong, Jangam District 2 (602-13 Singok-dong, 127,296 square meters) completed the formation of a promotion committee last April and is proceeding with the redevelopment process. As a large-scale project for 2,319 households, it is considered a key site for improving the overall living environment in the Singok area, alongside expanding infrastructure such as roads, parks, and green spaces. Once the redevelopment plans are finalized, the long-term urban structure of the Singok area-where residential, transportation, and living infrastructure are organically connected-is expected to become even stronger.

Aerial view of Jangam District 6. Provided by Uijeongbu City

Mayor Kim Donggeun stated, “Singok 1-dong is an area where changes that can be felt close to daily life-such as convenience infrastructure, cultural spaces, river landscapes, and improvements to the pedestrian environment-are rapidly accumulating. We will continue to support the creation of an environment where anyone can walk, stay, and enjoy a blend of culture and daily life.”

Meanwhile, the “Our Neighborhood Policy Roadmap” is a project that systematically organizes the policies and issues of each of the city’s 15 districts to share changes in citizens’ lives and strengthen communication with residents. The next edition will feature Singok 2-dong.

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