[Interview] Oh Seung-rok, Nowon District Mayor, "Full Effort to Develop Changdong Vehicle Base and Driver's License Test Site into a 'Bio Industrial Complex'"

Full Effort to Develop Biomedical Industrial Complex on Changdong Vehicle Depot and Driver's License Test Site... Seoul's First Natural Recreation Forest in Suraksan for Residents' Cultural and Natural Healing, Garden Support Center Opened Next to Bulamsan Azalea Hill to Expand Rest Areas... Negotiations with Government for Alternatives to Tae-neung Golf Course Site Housing Plan for 10,000 Units... Major Achievement Includes GTX-C Basic Plan Connecting Suseo Station to Samsung Station and Extending Main Station Platforms

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jong-il] “Around 2026, once the relocation procedures for Changdong Vehicle Depot and Dobong Driver’s License Test Center are completed, and a large-scale research-oriented hospital capable of clinical trials for new drugs and medical devices is attracted, Nowon-gu can transform into an economically self-sufficient city.”

Oh Seung-rok, Mayor of Nowon-gu, said in an interview with this paper, “We will revitalize the area by creating a 'Bio-Medical Industrial Complex' on the sites of Changdong Vehicle Depot and Dobong Driver’s License Test Center, the last large-scale development sites remaining in Seoul.”

Mayor Oh stated, “The relocation of Dobong Driver’s License Test Center has been a major challenge, but we are currently coordinating to sign the final agreement with Uijeongbu City as early as this month,” adding, “We will complete negotiations by the first half of this year at the latest.”

Currently, the relocation of Changdong Vehicle Depot has been confirmed, with a new depot under construction in Jinjeop, Namyangju City, scheduled for completion by the end of 2025. If negotiations with Uijeongbu City proceed smoothly, Dobong Driver’s License Test Center is expected to move to Jangam-dong by 2026.

Mayor Oh emphasized that attracting a large hospital capable of clinical trials and world-class pharmaceutical companies is essential to establish the Bio-Medical Industrial Complex. He said, “On November 9 last year, we signed a business agreement with Seoul National University Hospital to mutually cooperate in creating the Bio-Medical Industrial Complex,” and added, “As of January 1 this year, Seoul National University Hospital has dispatched one of its staff members to Nowon-gu Office, appointing them as the head of the TF team for the Bio-Medical Cluster development.” This indicates the high level of interest Seoul National University Hospital has in the project, to the extent of stationing staff at the district office full-time.

Mayor Oh said, “The Seoul Metropolitan Government is currently conducting a study on the ‘Seoul Bio-Medical Cluster Development and Attraction Strategy,’ with results expected in July,” and added, “We are currently contacting major domestic pharmaceutical companies to attract them first.”

Meanwhile, the core agenda for Nowon-gu’s administration this year is ‘Nowon where work and rest coexist.’ Mayor Oh noted, “With the increase in remote work due to the COVID-19 pandemic, many residents have said they have started to notice their neighborhoods,” and predicted, “Places where people can see and rest in their neighborhoods will be spotlighted to the extent that they will be called ‘Sulse-gwon’ (Slippers + Station Area).” Nowon-gu plans to carry out various projects this year to help residents, exhausted by the prolonged COVID-19 situation, heal through culture and nature.

Mayor Oh said, “For the first time in Seoul, we will create a natural recreation forest and a circular walking trail on Suraksan Mountain, building 25 log cabins for residents to use as overnight accommodations,” and added, “A garden support center recently opened next to the azalea hill on Bulamsan Mountain, and an elevator observatory designed for the physically disadvantaged will open soon.” He continued, “Residents have so far only rested in Nowon-gu during evenings and weekends, but from now on, it will transform into a space for rest throughout all seasons,” emphasizing, “We need a paradigm shift by providing well-equipped convenience facilities and drastically improving accessibility.” The convenience facilities that make good use of the natural environment are expected to be completed by February to March this year.

He is also considering alternatives regarding the government’s announcement last year as part of the August 4 metropolitan housing supply plan to build 10,000 housing units on the site of Taereung Golf Course.

Since various benefits such as transportation infrastructure need to be provided to residents, district-level measures are necessary during negotiations with the government. He said, “We commissioned a study on the transportation demand around Taereung Golf Course last year,” and added, “Thanks to joint efforts with local National Assembly members, the government agreed not to push the project forward without the consent of the autonomous district. We will continue to consult with the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport.”

Also, the inclusion in the basic plan for the metropolitan wide-area express railway (GTX-C) project announced by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport last December, which connects the railway from Suseo Station to Samseong Station and extends platform lengths at major stations including Changdong Station, is regarded as an achievement of Mayor Oh and other district mayors and National Assembly members from northeastern Seoul.

Mayor Oh said, “This means that the necessary infrastructure conditions will be prepared in advance so that KTX (SRT) can be extended to Uijeongbu at any time in the future,” and predicted, “In the near future, an era will open where people in northeastern Seoul, such as Nowon, can take high-speed trains to Busan or Gwangju without having to go to Seoul Station, Yongsan Station, or Suseo Station.”