Road Damage and Aesthetic Improvements Underway to Welcome Guests
Residents' Complaints About Sewer Odors Also Being Attentively Addressed
A banner announcing repair work due to road damage on the Art Street in Dong-gu, Gwangju, is displayed ahead of the nostalgic Chungjang Festival celebrating its 20th anniversary. [Photo by Dong-gu, Gwangju Metropolitan City]
Dong-gu, Gwangju Metropolitan City, which is preparing the 'Chueok-ui Chungjang Festival' that is becoming a representative event of the Gwangju area, is busily moving again to make new history.
In 2020, when COVID-19 was rampant, the festival was completely canceled, and in 2021 it was held on a reduced scale. Last year's festival, held normally again after two years, proved its robustness as it was recorded to have attracted 540,000 participants despite concerns. With the steady increase of foreign visitors, Dong-gu is meticulously preparing even the smallest details, aiming to go beyond a local festival and start globalization.
According to Dong-gu on the 14th, this year's 20th Chungjang Festival will be held from October 5 to 9 at the 5·18 Democracy Square, Chungjang-ro, and Geumnam-ro areas.
The nostalgic theme street, which recreates the old appearance of Chungjang-ro from the 1970s to the 2000s, will provide novelty to the MZ generation and memories to the older generation, creating a place of harmony. The festival's biggest attraction, the ‘Chungjang World Parade,’ will feature 13 neighborhoods participating with different themes, with various parades such as competition parades, movie concept parades, and Asian country parades continuously taking place.
With about 20 days left before the opening, Dong-gu is focusing not only on festival preparations but also on improving living environments such as repairing damaged roads, resolving odors, and enhancing safety and aesthetics. In addition, they are listening to residents' complaints and striving for prompt improvements.
Recently, when a complaint about insufficient streetlights causing pedestrian inconvenience was received at the old city hall entrance road, the person in charge immediately visited the site, assessed the situation, and recognized the need for improvement firsthand.
They have also checked complaints mixed with dissatisfaction about the 'sewer odor street' near Chungjang-ro 1-ga and the Asian Food Culture Street, as well as complaints regarding the corrosion status of the steel barricade next to the pagoda tree at the Asia Culture Center, and are devising countermeasures.
Along with addressing residents' daily inconveniences, Dong-gu plans to complete the 'Art Street Pedestrian and Vehicle Road Maintenance Project,' originally scheduled for completion on the 10th of next month, ahead of schedule before the festival. Currently, asphalt concrete coating is being applied to complement the shortcomings of the existing paving stones and to consider the landscape.
To solve the streetlight shortage issue at the old city hall entrance road, they have secured a project budget of 50 million KRW through supplementary budgeting and plan to install eight additional streetlights. Separately, to enhance the festival atmosphere, 1,750 cheongsachorong (traditional Korean lanterns) and 10 tree projection lights will be installed on Geumnam-ro and Jungang-ro, along with other landscape lighting.
Regular patrols will be conducted to manage illegal street vendors and roadside obstructions (such as carts and stalls), and pilot installations of sewer odor reduction facilities will be operated near Chungjang-ro and Geumnam-ro.
A district official emphasized, "We will do our best to prepare for welcoming guests so that everyone around the world can have memorable experiences and memories at the Chungjang Festival."
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