Changwon Ungdong 1 District to End Prolonged Stagnation ... Normalization Underway with 2032 Completion Target

The Busanjinhae Free Economic Zone Authority and Gyeongnam Development Corporation have announced that they will end the prolonged stagnation of the Ungdong 1 District development project in Jinhae-gu, Changwon City, and push forward with normalization efforts.

On December 1, Park Seongho, Director of the Free Economic Zone Authority, held a press conference at the Gyeongnam Provincial Government Press Center and presented a blueprint for normalizing the Ungdong 1 District project.

According to the normalization agreement signed on May 17 with Changwon City and Gyeongnam Development Corporation, the Free Economic Zone Authority plans to extend the project by five years and complete the development of the remaining sites, including leisure and resort facilities, by 2032.

Sungho Park, Director of Busanjin Port Economic Free Zone Authority, is announcing measures to normalize the development project of Ungdong 1 District in Jinhae-gu, Changwon-si, Gyeongnam. Photo by Se-ryeong Lee

Previously, the Free Economic Zone Authority, which holds approval rights over the Ungdong 1 District development project, selected Gyeongnam Development Corporation as the sole project operator on March 27, replacing the previous joint operators, Changwon City and Gyeongnam Development Corporation.

On October 28, Gyeongnam Development Corporation signed an agreement to acquire the golf course from Jinhae Ocean Resort, a private operator currently running the golf course in Ungdong 1 District.

At the same time, last month, the corporation received prior approval to issue construction bonds for the acquisition of the golf course, issued 72.5 billion won in bonds, and used these funds to repay 100.9 billion won in loans that Jinhae Ocean Resort owed to financial institutions.

The loan repayment was divided based on the land ownership ratio in Ungdong 1 District: 64% by Gyeongnam Development Corporation and 36% by Changwon City.

For about four months going forward, the development corporation will allow Jinhae Ocean Resort to continue operating the golf course while it completes the integration of IT and reservation systems, organizes the operational workforce, and finalizes various essential consignment contracts.

Once all procedures are completed, as early as April next year, the development corporation plans to directly operate the golf course and use the operating profits to repay the construction bonds.

There are significant discrepancies in the claimed total investment amounts used by Jinhae Ocean Resort for building the golf course, including loan repayments, as asserted by the development corporation, Changwon City, and Jinhae Ocean Resort. The final amount is expected to be determined through litigation in the future.

The Free Economic Zone Authority and the development corporation are also working to resolve the issue of former fishermen from Jinhae and Uichang, who lost their fishing rights and only received livelihood support land without development rights due to the Ungdong 1 District project.

Since June, the development corporation has been conducting a study to change the future development plan, including ways to address complaints from former fishermen. The Free Economic Zone Authority will complete the construction of the livelihood support land and, by April next year, revise the Ungdong 1 District development plan so that former fishermen can directly develop the land and exercise their property rights according to the district unit plan.

Director Park stated, "No matter what difficulties arise, we will establish and revise the remaining leisure and resort business plans by 2027, and ensure seamless progress from groundbreaking in 2029 to completion in 2032."

He added, "We will build a Free Economic Zone Authority that grows together with the local community through development characterized by public interest, transparency, and expertise."

An official from the development corporation said, "As the project operator for Ungdong 1 District, we will successfully acquire and operate the golf course and responsibly resolve the remaining issues to normalize the project. Through the normalization of the Ungdong 1 District project, we aim to become a trusted public corporation for the residents."

Development site of Ungdong 1 District, Jinhae-gu, Changwon City, Gyeongnam Province. Provided by Changwon Special City

The Ungdong 1 District development project aims to create accommodations, leisure, and resort facilities on a 2.25 million square meter site in Sudodong, Jinhae-gu, Changwon City.

However, after Jinhae Ocean Resort, the private operator, began construction in November 2013, it only completed the golf course by December 2017 and failed to carry out the rest of the project, causing progress to halt.

After Park Wansu took office as Governor of Gyeongnam Province in the 8th popularly elected administration, a five-party consultative body was formed to normalize the project, including Gyeongnam Province, the Free Economic Zone Authority, Changwon City, Gyeongnam Development Corporation, and Jinhae Ocean Resort. However, due to the breakdown of agreements among the joint project operators, the project remained stalled for years.

Ultimately, Gyeongnam Development Corporation and Changwon City, the previous joint project operators, held Jinhae Ocean Resort accountable for failing to carry out the remainder of the project after building the golf course and terminated the project agreement in June, revoking its status as a private operator.

Currently, the Free Economic Zone Authority and the development corporation are working to normalize the Ungdong 1 District development by conducting design studies for the remaining infrastructure, including 1.2 kilometers of roads and 176,000 square meters of green space, since July, with construction scheduled to begin in January 2026.

The basic plan for the remaining leisure and resort facilities will be completed by December 2026, with operator selection and development planning to be finalized by the end of 2027. Groundbreaking is targeted for the second half of 2029, with completion scheduled for 2032.

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