Gwangju Sangmu Incineration Plant Transforms into Complex Cultural Town... New Attraction Anticipated

Incineration Plant Factory Building Cultural Regeneration Design Competition Winner: 'Shinhan Comprehensive Architects'

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters, Reporter Yoon Jamin] The Gwangju Sangmu Incineration Plant, once a hated facility, is being transformed into a cultural complex town for citizens through regeneration as a space for education, communication, and culture.

On the 1st, Gwangju Metropolitan City announced that in the design competition for the ‘Factory Building Cultural Regeneration Project’ on the site of the old Sangmu Incineration Plant in Chipyeong-dong, Seo-gu, the work titled ‘From Extinction to Revival’ by Shinhan Architects & Engineers Co., Ltd. (CEO Kim Sanghoon) was selected as the winning entry.

The judging panel, composed of university professors and architects from inside and outside the region, selected the best work after discussions by comprehensively considering spatial planning, layout planning, landscape planning, and remodeling plans among the submissions. Additionally, four other works were selected as runners-up.

The winning work, themed ‘From Extinction to Revival,’ achieves circulation in the Sangmu district area including the park, Gwangju Stream, city, and nature through the regeneration of the incineration plant, and naturally connects to the representative library being built adjacent to the east site of the incineration plant underground.

In particular, the accessibility using the sloped terrain and the design of the parking lot underground to create a park on the ground and enhance openness with the Sangmu district were highly evaluated.

Furthermore, the existing incineration plant’s internal preserved facilities were artistically arranged to highlight the advantages of regenerative architecture.

The exterior design formed a simple envelope by overlaying a permeable material on the existing outer wall of the incineration plant.

The design, which projects the existing form as a silhouette, was notably praised for revealing the internal dynamism while organizing it with a frame.

Gwangju City plans to sign a contract with the winning team and proceed with the basic and detailed design phases.

Along with this, a design advisory committee consisting of resident representatives and experts will be formed during the design process to discuss the overall internal space configuration and external design.

Kim Yoseong, Director of the City’s Culture and Sports Office, said, “The Sangmu Incineration Plant, once a hated facility, will be transformed into a cultural complex town for citizens through regeneration as a cultural space, and it is expected to become a new landmark of Gwangju.”

Meanwhile, the site of the Sangmu Incineration Plant, closed in December 2016, is planned to be developed into a ‘Complex Cultural Community Town.’ As a priority project, the existing management and welfare buildings on the site are being demolished, and after design for the construction of Gwangju’s representative library on that site, the process of selecting a construction company is currently underway. Construction is scheduled to begin this month.