Unauthorized Street Vendors Near Sindebang Station in Gwanak-gu Reborn as GwanakS Specialized Street After 40 Years

Unauthorized Street Vendors Lined Up Around Sindebang Station Fully Cleared After 40 Years
Created Gwanak S-Special Street for Residents and Vendors to Coexist, Reborn as a Gwanak District Landmark

The area around Sindaebang Station in Gwanak-gu (Mayor Park Junhee) has been newly reborn as the ‘Gwanak S Special Street’.

The ‘S’ in Gwanak S Special Street stands for ‘Sindaebang Station’, ‘Safety’ in pedestrian environment, and ‘Smile’ shared by residents and merchants.

Since the subway opened in 1984, the area around Sindaebang Station has faced ongoing issues related to unauthorized street vendors for over 40 years, including ▲pedestrian safety ▲sanitation ▲environmental concerns. The district attempted several times to reorganize the area, but faced difficulties as the issue was directly linked to the livelihoods of the street vendors.

After numerous communications and negotiations with the street vendors, the district signed an agreement with representatives of the vendors last March, removing a total of 16 unauthorized street vendor locations around Sindaebang Station, marking the start of the ‘Gwanak S Special Street’ project.

Subsequently, surrounding infrastructure such as water and sewage, electricity, railings, and sidewalks were renovated together, and the completion ceremony was finally held on May 24.

The district replaced the unauthorized street vendors with new installations featuring a unified design and converted the system to a permit-based one. While protecting livelihood-type street vendors, new stalls were produced and installed in accordance with relevant laws and Seoul city street vendor guidelines.

With the creation of the ‘Gwanak S Special Street’, the district can now provide residents with a safe pedestrian environment and drastically improve urban aesthetics and sanitation issues.

The completion ceremony was successfully held with about 60 attendees, including Gwanak-gu Mayor Park Junhee, members of the National Assembly, city and district council members, coexistence council members, and residents.

The district hopes that the ‘Gwanak S Special Street’ will become one of Gwanak-gu’s representative landmarks.

Gwanak-gu Mayor Park Junhee said, “After countless discussions with street vendors and residents, we have finally reached the completion ceremony today,” adding, “Going forward, Gwanak-gu will continue to do its best with an open communication approach to make Gwanak a happy place for everyone.”