Creating a 'Car-Free Youth Street' at Exit 1 and 2 of Hoegi Station in Dongdaemun-gu

[Seoul District News] Dongdaemun-gu Hoegi Station Exits 1 and 2, 860m Section Planned as ‘Dokkaebi Street’ (Tentative) & Cultural Street with Attractions, Food, and Entertainment to Proceed After Surveying Merchants and Residents... Yeongdeungpo-gu to Host ‘3rd Child and Youth Policy Proposal Contest’ and ‘Policy Festival’ on 29th at Municipal Mullae Youth Center and Mullae Park... Eunpyeong-gu to Hold ‘Eunpyeong Village Education Festival’ on 28th

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jong-il] Dongdaemun-gu (Mayor Lee Pil-hyung) is promoting a project to create a car-free street called ‘Dokkaebi Street (tentative name)’ along an approximately 860m section from Exit 1 to Exit 2 of Hoegi Station.

The area around Hoegi Station Exits 1 and 2 is close to Cheongnyangni Station, making it highly accessible, and nearby are Kyung Hee University, Hankuk University of Foreign Studies, and University of Seoul, making it suitable for young people to gather.

Leveraging these advantages, the district plans to create a car-free street with a balanced arrangement of attractions, food, and entertainment, aiming to make it a street full of culture and youth. The district expects this to revitalize the surrounding commercial area.

Before the project, the district will produce and distribute promotional leaflets within this year to effectively inform merchants and residents around Hoegi Station Exits 1 and 2 about the project’s purpose and effects. In the first half of next year, it plans to hold explanatory meetings with businesses and conduct various surveys on residents’ support or opposition.

With the consent of merchants and residents, the district will consult with related organizations such as Seoul City and Dongdaemun Police Station and conduct traffic regulation reviews.

If the implementation of ‘Dokkaebi Street’ receives positive responses and proves effective, the district plans to expand the project to other areas within Dongdaemun-gu.

Lee Pil-hyung, Mayor of Dongdaemun-gu, stated, “Urban spaces gain vitality when people gather and engage in various activities. Currently, Hoegi Station is a place where people just pass by, but we will create a car-free street where people can stay, eat, watch, and enjoy.”

Yeongdeungpo-gu (Mayor Choi Ho-kwon) announced on the 29th that it will hold the ‘3rd Children and Youth Policy Proposal Contest’ and ‘Policy Festival’ at the Municipal Mullae Youth Center and Mullae Park.

Now in its third year, the Children and Youth Policy Proposal Contest was organized under the subtitle ‘We Make Our Yeongdeungpo’ to expand participation rights for children and youth and to discover policies suited to their perspectives, aiming to have a positive impact on the local community.

From the 4th to the 7th of this month, the district accepted applications through the Yeongdeungpo-gu website’s public notices from teams of up to five members, consisting of students from 4th grade elementary to 3rd grade high school attending schools in Yeongdeungpo-gu. A total of 22 teams submitted policy proposals.

Participants chose one topic from either designated themes or free themes to propose policies for children and youth. The designated themes included ▲Play and Leisure ▲Participation and Civic Awareness ▲Safety and Protection ▲Health and Social Services ▲Education ▲Housing Environment, all related to the happy lives of children and youth. The free theme allowed for any policy proposals needed from the perspective of children and youth.

Seventeen teams participated in the preliminary contest held on October 12, presenting either in person or via video. Through preliminary judging evaluating policy validity and feasibility, five teams were selected to advance to the finals.

The finalist teams will refine their ideas through mentoring, prepare PPTs and videos, and participate in mock presentations before competing in the final contest on October 29. One grand prize team, two excellence award teams, and two merit award teams will be selected. Adopted ideas will be reviewed by relevant departments and incorporated into district policies.

On the same day as the final contest, the ‘Children and Youth Policy Festival’ will be held at Mullae Neighborhood Park. A policy exhibition hall showcasing Yeongdeungpo-gu’s children and youth policies will be operated. In addition to sharing policies from both finalists and preliminary teams, fresh ideas will be collected on-site.

The policy experience center will allow visitors to explore facilities and institutions such as the Youth Autonomous Cultural Space, Dadream Complex Cultural Center, Yeongdeungpo Education Welfare Center, and Good Neighbors. The play zone will feature face painting, a Halloween photo zone, trampolines, and more. Especially, the Yeongdeungpo Comprehensive Social Welfare Center will provide family games such as shoe throwing, limbo, and giant Jenga, enhancing the enjoyment of festival attendees.

For further details and upcoming schedules, visit the Yeongdeungpo-gu website’s news section or contact the Yeongdeungpo-gu Children and Youth Welfare Division.

Choi Ho-kwon, Mayor of Yeongdeungpo-gu, said, “This contest was organized to respond to the various demands of children and youth wishing to participate in district administration. We hope for active interest from children, youth, and parents so that child-friendly policies tailored to children’s needs can be discovered.”

Eunpyeong-gu (Mayor Kim Mi-kyung) will hold the festival ‘2022 Eunpyeong Village Education Festival’ on the 28th at Seoul Innovation Park, bringing together education stakeholders such as youth, parents, teachers, and community instructors.

The ‘Eunpyeong Village Education Festival’ integrates the 6th Eunpyeong Innovation Education Festival and the 10th anniversary event of Eunpyeong Education Content. It features youth stage performances, experience booths, food, busking, event zones, and the education content anniversary event, marking the first in-person event in three years. Various education stakeholders including Eunpyeong Innovation Education project organizations, local networks, youth clubs, and parent associations participate.

The opening ceremony of the 6th Eunpyeong Innovation Education Festival will be held at 11 a.m. on the 28th at the outdoor stage of Seoul Innovation Park. Following this, a congratulatory performance will showcase youth stage performances by 24 teams of local elementary, middle, and high school students, including orchestra, dance, band, musical, and theater.

Experience booths will operate from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., offering various activities such as puzzles, napkin art, bead ring making, solid toothpaste making, and university students sharing their major stories.

The busking stage, accepting first-come-first-served registration on-site, allows any Eunpyeong-gu youth to freely showcase talents such as singing or dancing.

Additionally, the event zone will provide various games, karaoke, photo booths, and more, while food booths operated by parents will also be available.

The ‘Eunpyeong Education Content 10th Anniversary Event’ will be held at 4 p.m. in the multipurpose hall on the first floor of the Future Hall at Innovation Park. It will include sharing achievements of the past 10 years, informal talks among community instructors, teachers, parents, and students involved in the project, an award ceremony for the naming contest of the community instructor brand, and an orchestra congratulatory performance. The event aims to share past achievements and envision the next decade.

The festival is hosted by Eunpyeong-gu, the Western Education Support Office, and the Eunpyeong Village After-School Support Center. For inquiries, contact the Eunpyeong Village After-School Support Center.

Kim Mi-kyung, Mayor of Eunpyeong-gu, said, “We have prepared a festival where everyone can enjoy by directly seeing and experiencing innovation and content in education. We hope it becomes an opportunity for children and youth to be happy in Eunpyeong and for the entire community to unite.”