What Is the Secret Behind Gwanak-gu's Transformation into an 'Ecological City, a Healing and Clean City'?

Various Projects for Creating an Ecological City Including Byeolbitnaeruncheon, Gang Gam-chan Urban Agriculture Center, and Euddeum Park

Children experiencing urban agriculture at Gang Gam-chan Urban Agriculture Center

[Asia Economy Reporter Jongil Park] Gwanak-gu (Mayor Park Junhee) is revitalizing the daily lives of residents who are physically and mentally exhausted due to the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic by creating various healing spaces within the urban area.

During the 7th term of the elected administration, Gwanak-gu has set the goal of realizing a ‘Clean Living Environment’ where people and nature harmonize. The district is carrying out various projects to improve residents’ quality of life and happiness by creating green healing spaces in the city.

First, the district is implementing the ‘Starlight Naerimcheon Special Project’ to transform Starlight Naerimcheon, Gwanak-gu’s representative healing space, into a desirable resting place where people can enjoy both nature and culture.

In March of this year, 800 million KRW of special grants were invested to install landscape lighting on six bridges within Starlight Naerimcheon. Various concept lighting fixtures, including 561 LED line bars, 68 LED floodlights, and 17 designer lamp posts, were installed on bridge sides, railings, and stairs to create a vibrant nighttime waterside scenery and establish a safe and pleasant walking path.

The ecological landscape improvement project, conducted in two phases, was also completed in May. Shrubs such as climbing roses, golden euonymus, and forsythia were planted in vegetation planters to create a richer and more colorful landscape throughout the seasons.

Additionally, hanging flower pots were installed on major bridges to create a distinctive and visually appealing walking path.

In May, the district also created the Green Scenery Road along Gwancheon-ro, widening sidewalks to improve the walking environment and planting abundant greenery to provide residents with a green resting place they want to walk through.

By the end of June, a cultural platform where nature and culture can be shared will be established. This space will serve as a place where young people and cultural figures gather to engage in cultural and artistic activities, embodying cultural values.

By the end of next year, the unrecovered section from the main gate of Seoul National University to Dongbang 1 Bridge will be transformed into an ecological stream with flowing water. Upon completion of this restoration project, which will involve a total of 33.1 billion KRW in city funds, the ecological corridor connecting Gwanaksan Mountain to the Han River will be completed, restoring naturalness and reborn as an ecological resting place for residents.

The district is also focusing on creating healing spaces for communication and sharing through urban agriculture. It has established a total of 106 sites with 32,053㎡ of farmland, including the largest single-area farm in Seoul, the Gang Gamchan Garden (13,760㎡), Gwanak Urban Agriculture Park, and Nakseongdae Garden, providing residents with leisure spaces where they can cultivate fields and enjoy walking.

In particular, in May of this year, the ‘Gang Gamchan Urban Agriculture Center’ was opened in the Nakseongdae area with a total project cost of 2.5 billion KRW. The district plans to promote urban agriculture activation by supporting urban agriculture activities through various educational programs and multipurpose spaces at the Gang Gamchan Urban Agriculture Center, which represents the southern Seoul region.

In line with the opening of the Sillim Line light rail transit in June next year, the entrance to Gwanaksan Mountain will be reborn as Euddeum Park. With 7.1 billion KRW in city funds, the old rest area will be renovated, and the existing parking lot will be transformed into a meeting plaza and outdoor performance hall, creating a complex cultural space for hikers and local residents and establishing it as a representative landmark park of Seoul.

Mayor Park Junhee stated, “Through the creation of Clean Gwanak, a core goal of the 7th elected administration, we will do our best to complete the urban healing space projects within my term to comfort and heal the hearts of residents exhausted by the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic.” He added, “We will continue to prioritize improving residents’ quality of life and happiness and accelerate the creation of an ecological city, Gwanak.”