Gwangju Nam-gu's Ambitious 'Street Food Zone' Falls into a Bottomless Pit

No Weekend or Year-End Boost... Quiet All Day Regardless of Time

20% Vacancy Rate... Merchants Complain "Sales Dropped 90%"

Four Festivals Held for Revitalization with Total 67 Million Won Invested, No Effect

The 'Baegun Square Street Food Zone' in Nam-gu, Gwangju Metropolitan City, which was promoted as a representative attraction of Nam-gu, Gwangju, appeared deserted at 7 PM on the 13th despite it being the evening peak time.
[Photo by Min Hyun-gi]

"It is good that Nam-gu Office frequently holds events, but they are ineffective. Due to the continuous showy events, it feels like Nam-gu has given up on the Food Zone."

This is a complaint from a store owner operating in the 'Street Food Zone' at Baegun Square in Nam-gu, Gwangju Metropolitan City. Observing the Street Food Zone from the weekend of the 9th to the evening of the 13th, there were almost no customers. The criticism has shifted from "there are no seats to sit and eat" during the initial opening last year to "there are no customers" now.

The Street Food Zone was established by Nam-gu as part of an urban regeneration project to revitalize the economy around Baegun Square, investing 2.6 billion KRW since 2020, and ambitiously opened on August 31 last year.

In the early days of opening, some places recorded monthly sales of tens of millions of KRW, but after a year, sales have sharply declined, and many stores are unable to endure and have closed down.

Even the fast food booth and Cube Steak booth, considered early members, could not withstand this situation and have ultimately closed. The Food Zone has a total of 36 stalls. Among them, about 20% of the 27 food service booths are vacant due to closures.

A store owner who has endured from the golden days at the opening to the worst days now lamented, "Compared to last year, sales have decreased by nearly 90%."

Given this situation, Nam-gu has been striving to revitalize the commercial district by holding four festivals this year around Baegun Square, but it is evaluated as "pouring water into a bottomless jar." Each festival costs between 7.5 million KRW to 20 million KRW, totaling 67 million KRW this year, but there has been no effectiveness.

There are criticisms that the nature of the Street Food Zone and the festivals are mismatched, indicating that Nam-gu has made a wrong choice.

Previously, when existing merchants opposed the introduction of the Food Zone last year, Nam-gu persuaded them by saying, "The Food Zone consists of foods that younger generations would like, and the merchants behind the Food Zone target different customers with soups, stews, and broths."

The Food Zone should attract younger people, but the festivals held by Nam-gu featured 'acoustic guitar performances' and 'saxophone performances,' making it difficult to say they targeted the younger generation.

Merchants argue, "Are these festivals, which are disconnected from the original purpose, really for the Food Zone?" and "Instead of wasting the budget on festivals just for show, a proper festival is needed at once."

Also, the 'parking lot' issue, which was pointed out as a problem from the beginning, remains unresolved, and because it was planned as 'street food,' there is still no space to eat on-site. Critics say this is the result of Nam-gu neglecting the Food Zone for over a year.

A Nam-gu official said, "After operating the Food Zone for a year, it seems that the main consumers were mostly elderly people accompanied by children," adding, "Regarding the parking lot, a court ruling earlier this month confirmed the legality of the public parking lot construction project, and when the 'Pureun-gil Bridge,' a pedestrian overpass connecting to Pureun-gil Park, is completed by April next year, there will definitely be good results."