Park Byung-gyu, Gwangsan District Mayor of Gwangju, "Incineration Facility, Seeking Direction After Listening to Residents' Opinions"

Park Byung-gyu, Mayor of Gwangsan District Office in Gwangju Metropolitan City, stated regarding the opposition of local residents to the resource recovery facility (incinerator), “I will meet the residents directly to listen to their opinions and determine the direction.”

On the 28th, Mayor Park held a press briefing at the district office and said, “Since the candidate sites were narrowed down to three places including Gwangsan-gu, the residents of Samdo-dong have formed an opposition group and held a rally at City Hall on the 27th. Since the residents of Gwangsan-gu raised the issue, I intend to meet them personally.”

Mayor Park explained, “From 2030, it will be legally mandatory to have a resource recovery facility within the local government area,” and emphasized, “I will hold a meeting with the residents as soon as possible to have a dialogue, understand their thoughts, and how the process will proceed, and seek a direction going forward.”

He also expressed his intention to promote the designation of ‘Yun Sang-won-ro’ to honor the spirit and elevate the honor of Yun Sang-won, the spokesperson of the May 18 Citizen Army martyr.

Earlier in April, the ‘Yun Sang-won Memorial Hall’ (Cheondong Village Democratic Community Center) opened in Cheondong Village, Imgok, where the martyr’s birthplace is located. Mayor Park said, “There is a resident opinion to name Imgok-ro, which connects to Yun Sang-won’s birthplace, as ‘Yun Sang-won-ro.’ We plan to work on naming the road to Imgok as ‘Yun Sang-won-ro.’”

In this regard, Gwangsan-gu has been promoting the honorary road name ‘Yun Sang-won-gil’ for ‘Cheondong-gil’ near the martyr’s birthplace and memorial hall, and held three resident briefings in May to gather local residents’ opinions. Many residents suggested designating the main road leading to the village where Yun Sang-won was born and raised as ‘Yun Sang-won-ro’ to enhance the village’s symbolic significance.

Mayor Park stated, “Based on residents’ opinions, we will actively consider granting an honorary road name bearing Yun Sang-won’s name not only to Cheondong-gil near the birthplace but also to the road from Bia to Imgok-ro.”