[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Koo Dae-sun] “Please attract a large-scale outlet to Gyeongsan!”
On the 22nd, Gyeongsan City delivered a petition with 162,892 signatures, reflecting the earnest wishes of Gyeongsan citizens hoping to attract a large-scale outlet to the Gyeongsan Knowledge Industry District, to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.
Gyeongsan Mayor Cho Hyun-il, People Power Party lawmaker Yoon Doo-hyun, Gyeongsan City Council Chairperson Park Soon-deuk, and People Power Party lawmaker Lee In-seon (Daegu Suseong) of the National Assembly’s Industry and Energy Committee visited the government’s Seoul office to deliver the petition containing the will of Gyeongsan citizens and a proposal signed by citizen representatives to First Vice Minister Jang Young-jin of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, recommending approval for changes to the development plan of the Gyeongsan Knowledge Industry District to attract the outlet.
From the 7th to the 12th, in just six days, 162,892 people participated in the signing, far exceeding the target of 100,000, demonstrating the citizens’ aspiration for a new leap forward for Gyeongsan.
All 23 mayors and county heads and all city and county council chairs in North Gyeongsang Province participated in the signing, along with employees of local companies, students and faculty from 10 universities, employees of financial institutions, and citizens from neighboring cities and counties, praying for mutual development beyond Gyeongsan to the entire North Gyeongsang region.
Mayor Cho Hyun-il and others emphasized while delivering the petition that attracting the outlet would be an essential and indispensable turning point for the success of the Gyeongsan Knowledge Industry District and the development of high value-added industries such as regional tourism and service industries, vital for revitalizing the local economy.
If a large-scale outlet is attracted to Gyeongsan, it is expected to prevent the outflow of local capital caused by shopping trips to other regions, create employment in related industries by attracting more than 5 million tourists annually through tourism infrastructure development, and positively impact the local commercial district.
Mayor Cho Hyun-il said, “I thank all 280,000 Gyeongsan citizens and everyone who actively participated in the signature campaign to attract a large-scale outlet, a definite growth engine for the development of the Gyeongsan area,” adding, “We will do our utmost to ensure that the efforts reflecting the earnest voices of Gyeongsan citizens are not in vain by securing approval for the development plan changes.”
In September 2020, Gyeongsan City and the Daegu-Gyeongbuk Free Economic Zone Authority attempted to attract the Shinsegae Premium Outlet to the Gyeongsan Knowledge Industry District with an investment of 120 billion KRW, but the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy opposed it, arguing that placing a distribution facility like an outlet on industrial land designated for factories was a special privilege, causing the plan to fail.
The city is currently pursuing a plan to change 150,000㎡ of land near the Gyeongsan Knowledge Industry District from industrial land to distribution commercial facility land with the goal of attracting a large-scale outlet again.
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
