Park Young-sun Declares Candidacy for Seoul Mayor, "Seoul's Great Transformation into a 21-Minute Compact City"

Official Seoul Mayoral Candidacy Declaration at Yeouido Korea Federation of SMEs on the 26th
"I will create Seoul as a city with 21 multi-nuclear distributed forms"

[Asia Economy Reporter Oh Ju-yeon] "What is needed now is to set the coordinates for Seoul's next 100 years after the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) together with the citizens. Historically, pandemics have brought about major transformations economically, socially, globally, environmentally, and technologically. Seoul must also face an era of great transformation."

Former Minister of SMEs and Startups Park Young-sun declared her candidacy for the April 7 Seoul mayoral by-election on the 26th at the Korea Federation of SMEs in Yeouido, Seoul. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

On the 26th, former Minister Park Young-sun officially announced her candidacy for Seoul mayor at 11 a.m. at the Korea Federation of SMEs in Yeouido, Seoul, stating, "If we overcome COVID-19, we can achieve a great transformation that changes the lives of Seoul citizens. Seoul needs a mayor who will leap forward as a G7 global digital economy city."

On that day, the foundation of former Minister Park's pledge was the 'Great Transformation of Seoul.' The intention is that to overcome current difficulties and move toward a more sustainable future, a major transformation is needed in various fields such as urban space, economy, education, and welfare.

Former Minister Park proposed the '21-minute Compact City' as the first step to elevate Seoul into a global digital economy capital after COVID-19. The 21-minute Compact City concept involves transforming Seoul from a centralized city into 21 multi-nuclear distributed cities to solve polarization and environmental issues and improve the quality of life for Seoul citizens.

Park said, "We will reorganize Seoul into 21 compact anchors and ensure that within a 21-minute transportation distance, jobs, education, childcare, healthcare, shopping, leisure, and culture are all accessible," citing Yeouido as an example.

He added, "Yeouido, shaped like an ellipse, is a compact city where commuting, schooling, leisure, culture, and shopping can all be resolved within 21 minutes. If this is well organized, it will serve as a catalyst for the '21-minute Compact City.' We will create a new urban form after COVID-19."

He also emphasized that by decentralizing the centralized downtown area, activating commercial districts in each region of Seoul, and complementing the drawbacks of downtown concentration, a comfortable Seoul will be created that simultaneously solves the problems of small business owners and self-employed individuals.

Former Minister Park identified key issues Seoul must address, including decreased sales for small and medium enterprises, small business owners, and self-employed individuals, housing instability, youth job reduction, and low birth rates, stating, "Through the great transformation of Seoul, we will create a fair and warm Seoul." Starting with the transformation of urban space revealed that day, she also mentioned transformations toward a digital economy, education and care, customized welfare, and healthcare.

Former Minister Park is expected to emphasize her 16 years of parliamentary experience and the administrative experience gained during her 1 year and 9 months as Minister of SMEs and Startups. Following her first solo schedule on the 25th, when she visited the 'Smart Super' opened during her ministerial tenure as part of digitalizing neighborhood commercial districts to check the situation, she also visited the second Smart Super store located in the Korea Federation of SMEs immediately after her candidacy announcement. Based on this accumulated experience, she plans to envision Seoul as a world-leading city.

Meanwhile, the event was held in the form of a citizen report meeting, providing time for direct Q&A with citizens via online connection.

In response to a citizen's question about why the time was set to '21 minutes' in the compact city concept, former Minister Park said, "A 21-minute walking distance is about 1.5 km, and if everything needed is placed within this area, environmental issues can be solved, and problems of commercial districts discriminated against due to urban concentration can also be resolved," adding, "The goal is to increase efficiency through multi-nuclear distribution rather than concentration."

She continued, "If hospitals, educational facilities, and others are within a 21-minute distance, life will become more convenient," emphasizing, "It will be a comfortable city for socially vulnerable people to live in."