[Seoul District News] Seongbuk-gu Renovates 610m Retaining Wall Path at Yongdap Station Line 2 with Unique Yongdap-dong Images & Rebirth as Local Landmark with LED Lighting Using Yongdap-dong Nature like Cheonggyecheon and Constellations ... Yangcheon-gu Transforms Aremal Children's Park into Spacious 3D Playground ... Dongdaemun-gu Opens 6th Our Neighborhood Care Center ... Yeongdeungpo-gu Produces and Distributes 23,000 Child Abuse Prevention Slogan Cup Holders ... Gangnam-gu Launches ‘The Gangnam’ Mobile App’s ‘Paperless Smart’
On the 10th, Jung Won-oh, Mayor of Seongdong-gu, walking along the newly renovated design wall of Yongdap Station on Line 2 railroad tracks
[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jong-il] Seongdong-gu (Mayor Jung Won-oh) announced that the railway retaining wall at Yongdap Station on Line 2 has been reborn as a new local landmark after two years of design work.
On the 10th, Seongdong-gu completed the creation of a design wall featuring sculptures symbolizing Cheonggyecheon and Yongdap-dong along a 310m section of the retaining wall on the south side of Exit 1 of Yongdap Station and held a lighting ceremony. This is a follow-up project to the first phase conducted last year on the station facade and a 300m section of the north retaining wall, completing a total of 610m of design wall creation.
At the southern entrance connected to Yongdap Station, a three-dimensional mural applying natural environment patterns was created, highlighting the pride of Seongdong residents with the slogan "I live in Seongdong." In the following section, sculptures abstracting natural elements familiar to residents such as constellations, Cheonggyecheon, and ivy vines, along with LED lighting, were installed. The subtle brightness of the nighttime LED lighting revitalizes the previously somewhat barren retaining wall path, allowing pedestrians to walk safely and comfortably.
Installation of a drainage pipe was also carried out simultaneously to eliminate odors and prevent pests during summer. A satisfaction survey conducted among residents during the project showed that over 80% of respondents were "satisfied," indicating high local community approval.
Mr. Moon, a resident of Yongdap-dong passing nearby, said, "The dull wall has been neatly redesigned, changing the neighborhood atmosphere," and added, "With LED lights at night, it is bright and pleasant, becoming a pride of Yongdap-dong."
Jung Won-oh, Mayor of Seongdong-gu, said, "We hope the design wall along the retaining wall path will become a new landmark in Yongdap-dong enjoyed by both residents and visitors," and added, "We will continue to strive to create a safe and pleasant environment through various design projects."
Yangcheon-gu (Mayor Lee Ki-jae) announced that it has transformed the terrain of Aretmal Children's Park into a ‘sunken-type three-dimensional play space’ maximizing spatial efficiency and opened it to residents.
Aretmal Children's Park near Yangmok Elementary School has been loved as a major resting place around Mokdong Station, where there is a relative lack of neighborhood parks, and serves as a school route for children. However, due to the narrow space surrounded by houses and roads and aging facilities, the need for redevelopment has been steadily raised.
Accordingly, the district used the architectural technique of ‘sunken space,’ which allows the widest use of the park, to create an open and spacious play garden. The play area is constructed in a stepped manner, one level lower than the ground surface, enhancing three-dimensionality through height variation.
The courtyard-type structure, wrapping the play space with distinctive resting areas such as bar tables and sitting walls along the park’s edges, will become a communication space reflecting the village culture.
In the central play area, swings, trampolines, wide slides, play mounds, and climbing nets, which are good for children’s sensory development and physical ability improvement, were installed to maximize the strengths of the children’s park.
Additionally, 2,380 trees of 15 species including Blue Angel, Cornus officinalis, and Hydrangea, and 4,300 herbaceous plants of 5 species such as silver grass and hosta were planted to create a fresh natural space in the urban area.
Moreover, the district is renovating eight other children’s parks including Sinwol 2-dong Flower Hill, Sinwol 4-dong Dang-gok, Sinwol 5-dong Dang-dwi, Sinwol 7-dong Children’s Park, Sinjeong 3-dong Flower Deer and Singi, Sinjeong 4-dong Ginkgo Pavilion, and Sinjeong 6-dong Dream Hill. Through this, it plans to accelerate the creation of ‘themed playgrounds by region that enhance residents’ quality of life.’
Lee Ki-jae, Mayor of Yangcheon-gu, said, “We will continue to steadily promote park redevelopment projects so that aging parks can be transformed into themed play spaces with unique character and stories as well as places for rest.”
Dongdaemun-gu (Mayor Lee Pil-hyung) announced that the ‘Dongdaemun-gu 6th Our Neighborhood Care Center’ opened on the 14th to address the care gap for elementary school students and has started operation.
Our Neighborhood Care Centers are care facilities located near home and school where elementary students (ages 6 to 12) can use play and rest services at any desired time regardless of income. Dongdaemun-gu has been establishing these centers since 2019 to resolve the elementary care gap and reduce parenting burdens.
The newly opened ‘Dongdaemun-gu 6th Our Neighborhood Care Center’ is located on the 2nd floor of Dongdaemun Comprehensive Social Welfare Center (22 Yakryeongsi-ro 5-gil) and consists of quiet and active activity spaces, office space, and kitchen space.
Our Neighborhood Care Centers provide not only ‘regular care’ but also ‘temporary care’ for urgent needs and various care services such as learning and play programs through professional staff including center directors and care teachers.
The ‘Dongdaemun-gu 6th Our Neighborhood Care Center’ operates Monday through Friday, from 1 p.m. to 7 p.m. during school terms, and from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. during vacations. The fee for regular care is 50,000 KRW per month including snack costs, and temporary care costs 2,500 KRW per day.
Applications and detailed information about Our Neighborhood Care Centers can be found on the Our Neighborhood Care Portal.
Lee Pil-hyung, Mayor of Dongdaemun-gu, said, “I hope the 6th Our Neighborhood Care Center becomes a comfortable play space like home for children and a care space where parents can entrust their children with peace of mind,” and added, “We will do our best to create a care environment without gaps so that people can safely give birth to and raise children.”
Yeongdeungpo-gu (Mayor Choi Ho-kwon) will carry out various projects from the 14th to the 20th to foster a child-friendly social atmosphere in commemoration of ‘Child Abuse Prevention Day’ on November 19.
‘Child Abuse Prevention Day’ is a legal commemorative day established to raise awareness of the prevention and deterrence of child abuse. The district has been conducting various projects annually to protect children’s rights and promote a child-friendly social atmosphere.
This year, under the theme ‘Raising Child Rights Sensitivity,’ the district will carry out projects including distributing cup holders with child abuse prevention slogans, watching films related to child abuse, and conducting surveys on child rights and abuse awareness among employees and community leaders.
The cup holder distribution involves producing 23,000 cup holders printed with six slogans related to child abuse prevention and distributing them to 43 cafes near the district office and community service centers.
The cup holders bear slogans such as “True education is respect and affection, not corporal punishment,” and “Don’t turn a blind eye to child abuse even if it’s not your child!”
This initiative aims to naturally inform cafe customers that November 19 is Child Abuse Prevention Day and encourage them to reconsider child abuse through various slogans.
On November 16 and 17, about 200 district office employees and members of the Yeongdeungpo Child Protection Agency will watch the film ‘The Child Client,’ which is based on the 2013 Chilgok child abuse case and urges people around to pay attention to child abuse prevention.
Additionally, a survey on child rights and child abuse awareness will be conducted among about 1,000 employees and community leaders, covering the meaning of child abuse and reporting methods. The results will be used to reflect in child abuse prevention education and policies.
Choi Ho-kwon, Mayor of Yeongdeungpo-gu, said, “I hope that Child Abuse Prevention Day serves as an opportunity to recognize that the interest of neighbors and those around is the most important factor in eradicating child abuse,” and added, “We will continue to implement various projects so that children can grow up healthily in a positive nurturing environment.”
Gangnam-gu (Mayor Cho Sung-myung)’s mobile app ‘The Gangnam’ project ‘Paperless Smart Administrative Service and Intelligent Chatbot’ was selected as an excellent case for spreading resident life innovation by the Ministry of the Interior and Safety and received the ‘Innovation Champion’ plaque on the 11th at BEXCO in Busan.
This contest, aimed at spreading and sharing local government regional innovation cases, saw 510 excellent cases from local governments competing. After three rounds of evaluation, 34 cases were selected as final excellent cases, with Gangnam-gu’s ‘Paperless Smart Administrative Service and Intelligent Chatbot’ project chosen as an excellent case in the resident life proximity category.
This project integrated the latest information and communication technology (ICT) into civil administrative services through the Gangnam-gu mobile app ‘The Gangnam,’ providing convenience to residents. It offers over 20 types of non-face-to-face electronic civil services such as civil petitions, illegal parking fine statements, welfare benefit applications, AI chatbot civil consultation, and mobile ticketing without waiting and pre-issuance of civil documents.
Especially amid the COVID-19 spread, ‘The Gangnam’ app quickly introduced COVID-19 response services such as PCR test result inquiry, quarantine notice issuance, and support fund application, receiving great response from residents.
Meanwhile, in August, Gangnam-gu held working group meetings with local governments such as Busan Metropolitan City, Namwon in Jeonbuk, and Yecheon in Gyeongbuk, which wanted to benchmark this project, sharing work experience and knowledge.
Cho Sung-myung, Mayor of Gangnam-gu, said, “I am pleased that our innovative administrative service applying smart technology received excellent evaluation from external organizations,” and added, “We will widely promote our excellent cases and refer to other innovative cases awarded in this contest to create a more convenient and smart city.”
Yongsan-gu (Mayor Park Hee-young) will conduct safety inspections of crowded places with private experts from the 14th to December 9.
The inspection targets 54 locations including performance halls, religious facilities, tourist accommodations, general hospitals, and super high-rise buildings. These are facilities in Yongsan-gu among the 666 multi-use facilities selected by Seoul City.
Main inspection items include securing movement and evacuation routes during mass gatherings, focused inspection of passage obstacles and risk factors, checking safety management systems and facility abnormalities by management entities, and verifying compliance with recent inspections and points raised under individual laws.
The district formed an inspection organization led by the district mayor as head and the deputy mayor as deputy head for this urgent safety inspection. It consists of a general team (led by the Director of the Safety and Construction Bureau) and four safety inspection teams from the Culture and Environment Bureau, Finance and Economy Bureau, Urban Management Bureau, and Health Center.
Inspections will be conducted by each department’s implementation plan, forming internal inspection teams. Joint inspections with private experts in fields such as architecture, fire safety, electricity, and gas are the principle during inspections.
Any passage obstacles or risk factors found, even minor ones, will be corrected immediately on-site, and necessary repairs and reinforcements will be promptly addressed after emergency measures. Facilities with risk factors will have usage restrictions, and if necessary, detailed safety diagnoses will be conducted by specialized safety diagnosis institutions.
A district official said, “This inspection is part of accident prevention improvement measures following the formation of a public-private joint accident recurrence prevention TF,” and added, “We will thoroughly inspect the safety management status in fields such as architecture, fire safety, and electricity for facilities where many people gather.”
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