[Seoul District News] Approximately 1,800㎡ on B1 and B2 floors... Five themed spaces based on Suraksan
Providing tourists around Suraksan Station with sightseeing information, cultural exhibition and experience spaces for residents... Dobong-gu selects 117 local shops as 'Carbon Neutral Practice Stores'... Jung-gu daycare center parents 92.5% satisfied... Yangcheon-gu promotes daily energy saving... Join Eco and Passenger Car Mileage programs... Dongdaemun-gu expands hazardous tree maintenance to private sector from this year until budget exhaustion
[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jong-il] Nowon-gu (Mayor Oh Seung-rok) announced that Suraksan Station on Subway Line 7 has been reborn as a space where nature, history, and culture coexist.
The purpose is to provide visitors who use the station for hiking Suraksan Mountain with information about Suraksan and nearby tourist attractions, and to offer local residents and students a cultural community space containing the stories of the area.
Suraksan Mountain is known for its many bizarre rocks and various hiking trails connecting valleys and ridges, attracting many hikers every year. It is also a representative attraction of Nowon, featuring the ‘Poet’s Path’ and ‘Cheonsangbyeong Park’ honoring poet Cheonsangbyeong, as well as popular restaurants, offering diverse sights and food.
The themed station consists of about 1,800㎡ spanning from basement level 1 to basement level 2 of Suraksan Station, divided into five zones. Construction began in April last year and after about eight months, the official opening ceremony was held on the 6th.
On basement level 1, there is ▲‘Surakdeul,’ a multipurpose rest area equipped with Suraksan tourist course guides, mobile phone charging modules, and circular benches, and ▲‘Happiness Flows,’ which allows visitors moving to basement level 2 through a photo zone and digital media art gate to experience and view the beautiful scenery of Suraksan.
On basement level 2, there is ▲a planned exhibition space introducing historical figures of Nowon, including poet Cheonsangbyeong. Besides exhibitions of works by local residents and students, seasonal planned exhibitions will be held so that subway users and local residents can enjoy culture and arts in their daily spaces.
Additionally, there are ▲a walkway called ‘Walking the Dream Path of Suraksan’ featuring videos of Suraksan’s four seasons, and ▲‘Enjoying Together with Suraksan,’ which guides major facilities near Suraksan Station.
The district expects the Suraksan Station themed station to become a model example of utilizing urban idle spaces.
Meanwhile, the district is promoting various projects to allow more people to enjoy Suraksan’s natural environment. A circular walking trail of about 1.68 km is being constructed to enable vulnerable pedestrians such as the elderly and stroller users to enjoy Suraksan, aiming for completion in April. Also, Seoul’s first urban-type natural recreation forest facility is scheduled to begin construction in March. The Suraksan Natural Recreation Forest, to be completed in 2023, is expected to allow people to enjoy nature within the city without long-distance travel.
Oh Seung-rok, Mayor of Nowon-gu, said, “The subway station space, which used to be just a place people passed through briefly to use the subway, has become a place of stay filled with meetings and stories, bringing joy.” He added, “I hope the newly transformed Suraksan Station themed station will provide various pleasures to hikers and local residents.”
Dobong-gu 'Our Village Carbon Neutral Practice Store' Selected Business Commemorative Photo (Jeongmidang, Donga Cheongsol Apartment Shopping Center, 103 Nohae-ro 69-gil, Dobong-gu)
Dobong-gu (Mayor Lee Dong-jin) selected 117 neighborhood retail stores leading energy-saving efforts together with the ‘2050 Carbon Neutral Practice Group,’ composed of environmental organization members, and announced them as ‘Our Neighborhood Carbon Neutral Practice Stores.’
To this end, from November to December last year, during the winter season when energy usage surges, the practice group visited about 500 neighborhood retail stores such as convenience stores, laundries, and general stores that are regularly used, checking three times for ▲whether heating was operated with doors open ▲whether indoor temperature was properly set (18~20℃) ▲participation in the ‘Reduce 4 Tons of Greenhouse Gas per Person’ pledge campaign ▲and Eco Mileage subscription. The ‘Reduce 4 Tons of Greenhouse Gas per Person’ campaign and Eco Mileage subscription were also promoted on-site.
Based on the inspection results, the district held a public-private evaluation committee composed of related officials and environmental organization representatives to select 117 energy-saving excellent retail stores as ‘Our Neighborhood Carbon Neutral Practice Stores.’ The list of selected stores was published on the Dobong-gu website (Notice Board/Announcements) for residents’ use, and QR code stands linking to energy-saving products and the ‘Reduce 4 Tons of Greenhouse Gas per Person’ pledge campaign were distributed.
Lee Dong-jin, Mayor of Dobong-gu, said, “Following the ‘2050 Carbon Neutral Practice All-Citizen Resolution Rally’ held on April 22 last year, we have been promoting the ‘Reduce 4 Tons of Greenhouse Gas per Person’ pledge campaign. For prompt realization of carbon neutrality, participation and practice by not only residents but also neighborhood retail stores are very important. We will continue to encourage energy saving and participation in the pledge campaign to contribute to carbon neutrality.”
Jung-gu, Seoul (Mayor Seo Yang-ho) announced on the 11th that 92.5% of parents are satisfied with the operation of district-run daycare centers according to a satisfaction survey.
The overall satisfaction with the childcare environment, including hygiene, nutrition, and safety, rose 0.3% from the previous year to 93.3%, increasing every year since the survey began in 2019. In particular, satisfaction with the district’s direct management policy increased by 5.7% from the previous year to 88.7%.
Positive evaluations mainly focused on free childcare, specialized childcare programs, and systematic operation methods, with many praising the district’s efforts to continuously listen to parents’ opinions and reflect them in policies.
Satisfaction among staff increased by 2.1% from the previous year to 80.1%, with the highest satisfaction in improved treatment allowances. However, dissatisfaction was relatively high regarding increased paperwork after entering the public sector. Other major opinions included requests to reduce the teacher-to-child ratio and to support substitute teachers smoothly.
Since 2019, Jung-gu has been the first in Seoul to operate national and public daycare centers directly to strengthen the public nature of childcare and provide high-quality childcare services. The biggest change due to direct management is that the district fully supports expenses such as special activity fees and extended learning fees, which were previously burdens on parents. In addition, eco-friendly meals consisting of one meal with four side dishes and seasonal fruits are provided, with attention paid to cooking environments and treatment of cooks.
Meanwhile, auxiliary staff are supported to reduce teachers’ workload and ensure no child is neglected in classroom care. Various efforts are also made to boost staff morale, including providing improved treatment allowances and operating stress counseling programs for staff.
This survey was conducted to analyze parents’ evaluations of overall daycare center operations and serve as a milestone for future policy directions. It was conducted over nine days from December 21 to 29, targeting 789 parents and 225 staff members of 13 district-run daycare centers in the area. Actual respondents were 433 parents and 225 staff, with response rates of 54.8% and 89.0%, respectively.
Seo Yang-ho, Mayor of Jung-gu, said, “The district plans to convert all daycare centers in the area to direct management by 2023. We will strengthen the public role in childcare and care so that all children can grow up in a better environment, supporting this institutionally and policy-wise. We will always listen to voices from the field and continuously create communication processes in policy decisions.”
Yangcheon-gu (Mayor Kim Soo-young) announced that it is continuously recruiting new members for the Eco and Passenger Car Mileage programs to actively encourage energy-saving practices in daily life for a hopeful new year.
Eco Mileage is a citizen participation program combining ‘Eco’ (environmentally friendly) and ‘Mileage’ (accumulate), encouraging voluntary energy saving in households and businesses by reducing greenhouse gases through saving electricity, water, and city gas to respond to climate change.
Individual members who reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 5% or more compared to the average emissions during the same 6-month period over the previous two years receive incentives ranging from 10,000 to 50,000 mileage points. Accumulated mileage can be used in various ways such as ▲Onnuri traditional market gift certificates ▲mobile cultural gift certificates ▲conversion to E-TAX mileage (cash).
Also, the district provides incentives ranging from 500,000 to 10 million KRW to groups that reduce emissions by 10% or more, evaluating reduction rates, amounts, and excellent energy-saving cases, encouraging a virtuous cycle of energy saving by using the incentives for energy efficiency projects. Yangcheon-gu, known as a green city, was selected as the best district in Seoul’s Eco Mileage program evaluation for two consecutive years last year.
Meanwhile, Passenger Car Mileage is a citizen practice program that provides mileage incentives based on the degree of voluntary reduction in driving distance, contributing to reducing greenhouse gases and fine dust.
It targets non-commercial passenger cars and vans with 12 seats or fewer registered in Seoul. Mileage from 20,000 to 70,000 points is provided based on the reduction amount (rate) compared to the previous year’s driving distance. Accumulated mileage can be used for ▲mobile cultural gift certificates and ▲conversion to E-TAX points (cash).
For detailed information about joining Eco and Passenger Car Mileage, contact the Green Environment Division or local community service centers.
Kim Soo-young, Mayor of Yangcheon-gu, said, “To pass on a clean green environment to future generations, practicing energy saving in daily life is not a choice but a necessity. We will continue active promotional activities to increase membership in Eco and Passenger Car Mileage so that the title of Green City Yangcheon-gu remains proud.”
Dongdaemun-gu (Mayor Yoo Deok-yeol) will start supporting the removal of hazardous trees located within residents’ living areas that may cause human or property damage from this year.
‘Hazardous trees around living areas’ refer to trees adjacent to residential areas where natural phenomena such as lightning, wind, or rain may cause human or property damage, or where damage has occurred and urgent removal is necessary.
The district has annually conducted hazardous tree maintenance projects only in public areas such as parks, green spaces, and forests, but residents have continuously requested removal of hazardous trees in private areas such as living zones.
In response, the district enacted the ‘Ordinance on Support for Removal of Hazardous Trees around Living Areas in Dongdaemun-gu, Seoul’ on November 11 last year and decided to expand support for hazardous tree maintenance projects to private areas such as residential neighborhoods from this year.
Support targets include dead trees or large dry branches that may fall and damage nearby facilities or pedestrians, trees likely to fall during strong winds or typhoons, and cases requiring urgent removal due to safety accident risks. Priority is given to urgent cases. However, trees in apartment complexes with 20 or more households or trees causing simple shade, view obstruction, leaf fall, mosquito or pest problems, which are not considered hazardous trees, are excluded from support.
Residents wishing to remove hazardous trees must submit a support application and the original consent form of the tree owner to the Dongdaemun-gu Office’s Parks and Greenery Division. After an on-site investigation, support eligibility is determined. Support is available until the allocated budget of 50 million KRW for this year is exhausted, based on priority selection criteria.
To prevent resident disputes, owner consent is mandatory for hazardous trees eligible for support. Even if support is approved, applications made fraudulently or cases where removal is hindered by complaints during the process may result in cancellation of support.
Yoo Deok-yeol, Mayor of Dongdaemun-gu, said, “We plan to expand the hazardous tree removal support project from public to private areas for residents’ safety. If you are concerned about hazardous trees causing damage, please apply for support without delay. We will do our best to build a safe city Dongdaemun this year as well.”
Gangseo-gu, Seoul (Mayor Noh Hyun-song) has taken swift action in preparation for the enforcement of the ‘Serious Accident Punishment Act’ on the 27th.
The district announced that it will establish and operate a dedicated task force (TF) called the Tentative Serious Accident Management Team within the Safety Management Division, which oversees safety and health management tasks to prevent serious accidents.
The purpose is to build and implement an effective safety and health management system to ensure thorough prevention and response to serious accidents.
In November last year, the Industrial Safety and Health Act was amended and enforced to stipulate local governments’ responsibilities for occupational accident prevention activities. With the Serious Accident Punishment Act coming into effect on the 27th, local governments’ responsibilities for serious accidents occurring in their regions have become more significant.
Accordingly, the district decided to establish the Serious Accident Management Team to focus on preventing serious accidents. The team will consist of six members, including a team leader, safety manager, and health manager, and will begin full operations within this month.
The newly established Serious Accident Management Team will perform roles such as ▲building a safety and health management system including securing personnel and budget necessary for serious accident prevention ▲establishing recurrence prevention measures when serious accidents occur ▲reviewing and managing improvements and corrective actions according to related laws ▲and reviewing and managing compliance with safety and health-related legal obligations.
Additionally, safety inspections and risk assessments will be conducted targeting local workplaces, district-commissioned construction projects, affiliated public workers, security guards, and temporary workers.
The district plans to actively prepare countermeasures, including establishing a comprehensive plan for serious accident prevention by listening to experts and field stakeholders as soon as the Serious Accident Management Team is established.
Noh Hyun-song, Mayor of Gangseo-gu, said, “We will prioritize residents’ safety and establish a systematic response system to eradicate serious accidents. We will do our best to create a safe environment city Gangseo where residents can live without worries about accidents not only at workplaces but also in daily life.”
The district is making every effort to prepare for disasters and spread a safety culture, aiming for WHO international safe city certification by May and the opening of an experience-centered Gangseo Safety Education Center in 2024.
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