Yeongdeungpo-gu Installs Address Plates at Small Parks and Bus Stops

[Seoul District News] Yeongdeungpo-gu Installs Object Address Plates at 548 Small Urban Parks and Bus Stops for Quick Response in Emergencies... Gangbuk-gu Operates 118 Heat Shelter Sites for Heat-Vulnerable Elderly... Jung-gu Installs Elevator in Namsan Town Rental Building... Dongdaemun-gu Improves Work Environment for Leading Manufacturing and Medical Companies

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jong-il] Yeongdeungpo-gu (District Mayor Choi Ho-kwon) announced that it has installed and is operating 548 object address plates that allow accurate identification of the locations of bus stops and small urban parks within the district.

Object addresses refer to address information assigned to facilities closely related to residents' daily lives, providing specific location details.

Until now, road name addresses were not assigned to facilities other than buildings, making it difficult to pinpoint locations during emergencies such as safety or disaster incidents.

Accordingly, following the establishment of legal grounds last year to assign addresses not only to buildings but also to objects and spaces, the district completed assigning object addresses to 837 frequently visited multi-use facilities including bus stops, outdoor earthquake evacuation facilities, and urban parks within the area.

Subsequently, object address plates were prioritized and installed at a total of 548 locations including small urban parks and bus stops frequently used by residents.

The object address plates were produced in a size of 220mm × 330mm (width × height), displaying both Korean and Romanized road names side by side. Additionally, the phrase “When reporting to 119 or 112, my location is 'Yeongdeungpo-gu ??? Bus Stop'” was included to enable quick use during emergencies.

The district plans to expand the installation of object address plates to taxi stands, outdoor earthquake evacuation sites, and other locations for residents' safety and convenience, and to manage them systematically.

Kim Sun-ok, Director of the Real Estate Information Division, stated, “The installation of object address plates will enable accurate location provision during emergencies, greatly aiding rapid response and safety assurance. We will continue to expand, maintain, and manage object addresses systematically to ensure no difficulties in finding road name addresses.”

Gangbuk-gu (District Mayor Lee Soon-hee) will operate 118 heatwave shelters until September to protect vulnerable residents such as the elderly from extreme heat.

With the start of the monsoon season, hot and humid weather continues. The Korea Meteorological Administration also forecasts that average temperatures in July and August will be higher than usual, making care for heat-vulnerable groups even more necessary.

Accordingly, the district has prepared heatwave shelters throughout the area to help vulnerable residents spend a cool summer. These include 13 community centers, 6 welfare centers, and 99 senior centers, totaling 118 locations.

Residents can avoid the heat and rest at community centers and welfare centers from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on weekdays, and at senior centers from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. on weekdays.

During heatwave warnings, shelter operating hours are extended. A total of 59 shelters operate extended hours: community centers until 9 p.m. on weekdays; welfare centers until 9 p.m. on weekdays and from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturdays; and senior centers from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. on weekends and holidays.

Additionally, the district has prepared night shelters and safety accommodations for vulnerable groups who have difficulty sleeping during tropical nights.

Seventeen senior centers designated as night shelters are open from 9 p.m. to 7 a.m. the next day. Those wishing to use them must apply in advance.

Safety accommodations are shelters where low-income seniors aged 65 or older, including basic livelihood security recipients and near-poverty groups, can stay during heatwave warnings. The district selects seniors in need of safety accommodations among vulnerable groups and issues usage vouchers. Selected seniors can present these vouchers during heatwave warnings to stay free of charge.

Detailed information on heatwave shelter operating hours and locations can be found on the Gangbuk-gu website.

Lee Soon-hee, Mayor of Gangbuk-gu, said, “I hope the elderly can rest safely and comfortably at the heatwave shelters. We will do our best to help all residents get through the summer healthily.”

Jung-gu, Seoul (District Mayor Kim Gil-seong) announced on the 8th that it has finalized plans to install an elevator connecting the entrance of Namsan Town in Yaksu-dong with the rental management building and senior center.

Namsan Town, built in 2000, is a large apartment complex consisting of 42 buildings (35 for sale, 7 rental) with 5,150 households. The rental buildings are located on the slope of Maebongsan Mountain, causing significant inconvenience in accessing the apartment complex entrance. There are 401 residents with disabilities and over 1,200 seniors aged 65 or older living there, making mobility convenience an urgent issue.

The managing entity, SH Corporation, attempted in 2009 to repair the elevator installed on the exterior wall of the rental management building, but the model was discontinued and could not be repaired. Furthermore, concerns about the collapse of the retaining wall at Namsan Town made installing a new elevator difficult.

In response, Jung-gu took direct action to resolve residents' inconveniences. In July last year, expert consultations were sought for elevator installation, and in October, discussions were held with Seoul City, SH Corporation, and residents. In November, a “Basic Plan for Remodeling the Namsan Town Rental Management Building and Building Structure Safety Diagnosis” was conducted.

The study concluded that remodeling the management building to install an elevator would satisfy both safety and mobility convenience. It would not affect the civil engineering retaining wall and aligns well with the main routes used by residents of the rental buildings. The new elevator will be a 13-passenger model accessible to people with disabilities, connecting the rooftop to the apartment connecting corridor and extending service to the first floor of the management building.

Seoul City secured a budget of 2.5 billion KRW on April 25 and informed the district that SH Corporation plans to complete the design by December, start construction in March next year, and complete it by October. Once the elevator installation in the high-altitude rental management building of Namsan Town is completed, accessibility to nearby Yaksu Station is expected to improve significantly.

A senior resident using the senior center and living in Namsan Town said, “The elevator installation was essential for the elderly and disabled. We are grateful that Jung-gu and Seoul City listened to our complaints and resolved our long-standing wish.”

Kim Gil-seong, Mayor of Jung-gu, said, “We have requested SH Corporation, the project executor, to expedite design and construction. We will continue to take the lead in resolving residents' inconveniences and carefully attend to every voice from our residents.”

Dongdaemun-gu (District Mayor Lee Pil-hyung) is providing up to 8 million KRW per company to 63 clothing manufacturing companies in the district to improve their working environments.

The district applied in April for the Seoul City public project “2022 Seoul-type Clothing Manufacturing Company Working Environment Improvement Project” to enhance the work efficiency and safety of garment workers representing the local manufacturing industry. After on-site inspections and review by the public selection committee, 63 companies in the district were selected.

Companies below average standards in dust, illumination, noise, and electrical safety were prioritized first; those with underground or semi-basement workshops with poor ventilation and constant exposure to harmful substances like mold were second; and companies with long business histories at their current sites were third.

The detailed items supported for working environment improvement include ▲essential safety equipment such as fire extinguishers, fire detectors, leakage breakers, and wiring boxes ▲work environment improvement equipment such as air conditioners, LED lighting, and ventilators ▲equipment to enhance work efficiency such as vacuum dies, sub motors, and cutting tables.

The working environment improvement project will continue until the end of November, and selected companies will receive support up to 8 million KRW excluding a 20% self-payment of the total cost.

Over the past three years, the district has supported 112 garment manufacturing companies through working environment improvement projects: 54 companies (about 300 million KRW) in 2019, 25 companies (about 220 million KRW) in 2020, and 33 companies (about 300 million KRW) in 2021, helping improve poor working conditions.

Lee Pil-hyung, Mayor of Dongdaemun-gu, said, “By improving the working environment of local garment manufacturing companies, we expect to enhance workers' health and work efficiency. Starting with this project, we will continue various supports to further revitalize the garment manufacturing industry, a representative manufacturing sector of our district.”

To foster the garment industry, the district has established the “Dongdaemun-gu Fashion Sewing Support Center,” offering various lectures such as CLO special lectures (3D pattern), CAD special lectures (2D pattern), and sewing education (basic, advanced, and intensive classes). It has also installed a “shared cutting room” equipped with a smart process system to reduce the sewing process burden for small garment companies and improve sewing quality, receiving strong positive responses from garment workers.