Seongsoo Park, Mayor of Songpa-gu, "Creating a New Premium City in Geoye and Macheon Areas"

[Seoul District News] Park Seong-su, Mayor of Songpa-gu, Conducts On-site Inspection of Geoye 2-1 District on the 18th for 'Geoye·Macheon Area Comprehensive Development Plan' Progress; Reviews Temporary Parking Lot, Resident Rest Area Site, Road Construction, and Redevelopment Residential Complex... Gwanak-gu Conducts Pre-inspection of Facilities for Major Accident Preparedness... Geumcheon-gu Provides Quality and Safety Management Training for Construction Sites to Ensure Safe Workplaces... Mapo-gu Issues 30 Billion Won Worth of Mapo Love Gift Certificates for Lunar New Year, Mobile Sales Start at 11 AM on the 25th

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jong-il] On the 18th, Park Seong-su, Mayor of Songpa-gu, visited Geoye 2-1 District, which is under active development as part of the major priority project ‘Comprehensive Development Plan for Geoye and Macheon Areas,’ to inspect the site.

Songpa-gu is promoting the ‘Comprehensive Development Plan for Geoye and Macheon Areas’ with the goal of balanced development across regions. The plan aims to improve the residential environment and secure infrastructure in the relatively underdeveloped Geoye and Macheon areas, laying the foundation for their leap into new premium cities.

During this site inspection, Mayor Park Seong-su, along with officials from various project departments and construction-related personnel, checked the construction status of the temporary parking lot site on future public land (5,639.9㎡) around 41-4 Geoye-dong in Geoye 2-1 District, the residents’ rest area site within the public open space (1,467㎡) around 198-17 Geoye-dong, and the construction of the north-south connecting road. They also visited the Songpa Signature Lotte Castle complex, which recently began occupancy, to review the completion and move-in status.

First, the district plans to build an education and cultural complex center (tentative name) on the future public land around 41-4 Geoye-dong. After conducting a feasibility study including economic analysis in May this year, construction is scheduled to begin in 2025. However, considering the time required until construction starts, the site will be operated as a ‘Resident Coexistence Parking Lot’ for about three years to alleviate parking difficulties residents have complained about. Construction will be completed by February, and from March, 150 parking spaces for residents (50 coexistence parking spaces, 100 sectioned parking spaces) will be created to enhance convenience.

Additionally, the public open space around 198-17 Geoye-dong will be developed into a residents’ rest area reflecting the voices of nearby residents. Installation of convenience facilities and tree planting will be completed within the first half of this year.

On this day, Mayor Park also did not miss inspecting the major road construction sites in the Geoye and Macheon area redevelopment promotion zone. He listened to updates on mid- to long-term projects such as the partial section of the north-south connecting road (390m, 4 lanes, Ogeum-ro 527 to Macheon-ro 311 section), scheduled for completion in June, and the construction of alternative roads for Macheon-ro and Seongnaecheon-ro. Lastly, he visited the Songpa Signature Lotte Castle complex in Geoye 2-1 District, which was officially approved for completion on the 6th and began occupancy on the 10th, to check the completion and move-in status.

After inspecting the site, Mayor Park Seong-su emphasized to the officials, “The ‘Comprehensive Development Plan for Geoye and Macheon Areas’ is not merely about urban redevelopment but is a very important project to realize the value of balanced development across the entire Songpa-gu.” He urged, “Please ensure that the development project, which will significantly improve residents’ quality of life, is carried out safely and without any setbacks.”

He added, “We will do our best to ensure that Geoye and Macheon areas, equipped with cultural and welfare facilities and convenient transportation, are reborn as a ‘new premium city where people, culture, and nature harmonize.’ We will continue to promote the ‘Comprehensive Development Plan for Geoye and Macheon Areas’ in a direction that the majority of residents desire, maintaining an administration based on empathy and trust.”

Meanwhile, Macheon 5 District (Macheon Cathedral District), which had been difficult to develop as a preservation zone, was finally selected as a private redevelopment candidate site in the Seoul Metropolitan Government’s ‘2021 Housing Redevelopment Project Candidate Site Contest’ on December 28 last year. The district plans to reapply for redevelopment candidate status for Macheon 2 District during this year’s redevelopment candidate site contest.

The Serious Accidents Punishment Act, which stipulates penalties for business owners and management responsible for causing casualties by violating safety and health obligations at workplaces and public facilities, will come into effect on the 27th of this month.

Accordingly, Gwanak-gu (Mayor Park Jun-hee) began preemptive inspections from the 18th targeting facilities related to serious accident prevention within the district to protect the lives and safety of residents.

The newly enforced Serious Accidents Punishment Act covers both serious industrial accidents and serious citizen accidents, including not only serious industrial accidents under the Industrial Safety and Health Act but also serious citizen accidents caused by defects in design, manufacturing, installation, or management of public facilities. This makes thorough preparation for facility safety more necessary than ever.

Mayor Park personally visited four sites including daycare centers, bridges, retaining walls, and tunnels to check facility safety. He especially urged each facility’s responsible department to thoroughly prepare for the obligations required under the Serious Accidents Punishment Act.

The obligations under the Serious Accidents Punishment Act for serious industrial accidents include ▲establishing a safety and health management system with necessary personnel and budget for accident prevention ▲formulating measures to prevent recurrence in case of accidents ▲implementing improvements and corrections ordered by central administrative agencies and local governments according to relevant laws ▲taking management measures necessary to fulfill obligations under safety and health-related laws.

The obligations for serious citizen accidents include ▲allocating and executing necessary personnel and safety budgets ▲establishing and performing safety inspection plans ▲preparing and implementing procedures for accident prevention tasks ▲establishing and implementing standards and procedures for subcontracting, outsourcing, and consignment ▲complying with safety and health-related laws ▲conducting education for safety managers and workers.

On the 11th, the district held a preparation briefing with relevant departments and affiliated organizations such as the Facility Management Corporation and Cultural Foundation to establish safety plans for each facility, ensuring systematic implementation of mandatory measures in preparation for the enforcement of the Serious Accidents Punishment Act.

Also, centered on the newly established Serious Industrial Accident Prevention Team in January, the district plans to build a safety and health management system that can effectively prevent industrial and citizen accidents.

A district official said, “Preventing safety accidents to protect the lives and safety of residents is the highest priority value above all else,” and added, “We will continue to do our best to create a safe city Gwanak where all residents can feel secure.”

Geumcheon-gu (Mayor Yoo Seong-hoon) conducted ‘Quality and Safety Management Training for Construction Sites’ on the 18th at 2 p.m. at the district office lifelong learning center, targeting 20 site managers and supervision team leaders of large construction sites.

Given the increased importance of construction site safety management following the recent outer wall collapse accident at an apartment construction site in Gwangju City, Geumcheon-gu emphasized quality management of wet works such as concrete during winter in this training.

Additionally, with the Serious Accidents Punishment Act coming into effect on the 27th, which imposes obligations on management responsible for securing the safety and health of all workers at workplaces, related construction personnel were educated in advance on the relevant contents and examples of safety inspections at construction sites.

Yoo Seong-hoon, Mayor of Geumcheon-gu, urged the participants, saying, “No matter how many times I emphasize it, safety is the most important thing,” and added, “Please work together for safe construction sites and, ultimately, a safe Geumcheon.”

Mapo-gu (Mayor Yoo Dong-gyun) announced on the 19th that it will issue 30 billion KRW worth of Mapo Love Gift Certificates via mobile starting at 11 a.m. on the 25th.

This issuance aims to revitalize the local small business districts, which have been stagnant due to prolonged social distancing, and to restore weakened consumer sentiment.

In particular, the district secured 70 billion KRW this year, the largest support issuance amount among Seoul’s 25 autonomous districts, and the upcoming Lunar New Year Mapo Love Gift Certificates will also be issued at a large scale of 30 billion KRW among the districts.

The Mapo Love Gift Certificates to be issued this time can be purchased up to a monthly limit of 700,000 KRW per individual, with a validity period of five years from the purchase date. As before, consumers can buy them at a 10% discount and receive 30-40% income tax deductions.

There are some changes in the purchase method. Previously, only cash purchases were possible, but now purchases are allowed with Shinhan Card credit cards only.

The recharge units have been unified to 10,000 KRW increments, changing from the previous 10,000, 50,000, and 100,000 KRW denominations, and purchases can be made only through Seoul Pay and T-money Pay.

If there is a remaining balance on previously issued gift certificates unused this year, the certificates held will be automatically transferred to the Seoul Pay app or others after midnight on February 28. Refund methods and schedules will be announced later individually via text message or KakaoTalk once finalized.

The biggest advantage of the Mapo Love Gift Certificates is that they can be used at daily life-related facilities frequently visited by residents, such as local restaurants and hair salons. During previous issuances, they were sold out within about 20 minutes, receiving great response from residents.

The usage locations are the same as the existing Mapo Love Gift Certificate affiliated stores and can be checked in detail on KakaoMap. However, considering the purpose of increasing sales for small businesses, usage is prohibited at large supermarkets, gambling-related businesses, major corporation-affiliated cinemas, direct franchise stores of large or medium-sized companies, and private academies with annual sales exceeding 1 billion KRW. Detailed information can be found on the Mapo-gu Office website’s notices.

Mayor Yoo Dong-gyun of Mapo-gu said, “We expect the Mapo Love Gift Certificates to greatly help increase sales for small merchants and small business owners struggling due to the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic,” and added, “We anticipate that the use of local currency will play a major role in revitalizing the local neighborhood economy.”