"No Time to Be Lonely" Traveling with Residents and Club Activities... The Scene at 'Wistay Byeollae' [Report]

Namyangju City 'W Stay Byeollae' Apartment
Cafe for 60+... No Time for Elderly to Feel Lonely
High Satisfaction Among Parents with Community Childcare Support

77-year-old grandmother Kim Yeon-jin is currently deeply immersed in a yoga club. Having worked as a yoga instructor for 40 years, she follows yoga movements five days a week with elderly peers by playing YouTube videos. After exercising, they gather to chat over a cup of tea. On Wednesdays, everyone brings their own lunchboxes to share meals together. The commonality among the club members is one: they are all residents of the 'Wistay Byeollnae Apartment' in Namyangju, Gyeonggi Province. Grandmother Kim Yeon-jin said, "I recently sold my old house and moved in here with my daughter," adding, "I have no time to be bored because of the apartment club activities."

78-year-old grandmother Seo Jae-boon also went on a day trip last spring with members of the apartment senior center. On weekends, they plan to dine out together. Sometimes, children from the floors above or below bring food in jars. She explained, "This is not just apartment living, but village living," and added, "Even though our surnames differ, we live together like a clan village."

The Wistay Byeollnae, visited by the reporter, is a newly built apartment complex located 10 minutes from Byeollnae Byeolgaram Station on Line 4, a transit-oriented development. At first glance, it looked like any other new town apartment, but upon closer inspection, it was somewhat different. Next to a franchise convenience store, there was a caf? for seniors. Inside the '60 Plus Center,' a space designated for those aged 60 and above, four grandmothers were peeling fruit and chatting at a table.

In Korean society, where loneliness among the elderly is a serious issue?one in every 100 elderly people dies alone each year?seniors living in Wistay Byeollnae have no time to feel lonely. Mr. Kang Hyung-wook (83) said, "I really like the seasonal events held in the complex, such as Chuseok celebrations, sharing sticky rice on the 15th day of the lunar month, and making rice cake soup together during Seollal," emphasizing, "Life here is more satisfying than in any other apartment I have lived in before."

All the main community facilities of W Stay are prefixed with the term "Dongnae," meaning neighborhood. They are arranged in a circular formation around the central plaza of the complex. (Photo by Jae-Hyun Park)

'Also gaining a reputation as a "child-friendly apartment"'

Wistay Byeollnae is a cooperative-type public-supported private rental housing. It received government support with the aim of actively fostering apartment community development. The standard deposit for an 84㎡ unit, known as the 'national standard size' suitable for a family of four, is 110 million KRW, with a monthly rent of 406,000 KRW. The smallest 60㎡ unit requires a deposit of 85 million KRW and a monthly rent of 275,000 KRW. The maximum residency period is generously set at eight years. However, to become a resident, one must become a cooperative member. The investment amount is 35 million KRW for 60㎡ units and 40 million KRW for 74㎡ and 84㎡ units. This investment is refunded in full when moving out and withdrawing from the cooperative.

The first residents, who gathered three years before moving in, established a social cooperative and joined as members to design the apartment together. In 2018, they even showcased a model house in Myeongdong. In 2020, the year they moved in, they formed a community committee, an education committee, and a business committee composed of residents. Thanks to this, residents here are genuinely committed to community activities, even creating jobs and working within the community. Currently, about 1,500 people live in 491 households here, with 40% being children.

Focusing on community activities, the community facilities within the complex are 2.5 times larger than the legal standard. There are shared facilities such as the 'Neighborhood Woodshop,' which provides woodworking materials and equipment; the 'Neighborhood Gym,' offering various exercise equipment and sports classes; a communal garden used by 44 households; and the 'Neighborhood Caf?,' a resting place for residents. There is also a 'Neighborhood Laundry' where residents can use washing machines with coins when needed, and a 'Neighborhood Kitchen' where residents gather on special days like Chuseok or Seollal to cook and share side dishes.

This is the 'Neighborhood Creative Studio' that supports residents' hobbies. Here, there are the Neighborhood Spaceship for children, the Neighborhood Broadcasting Station, and the Neighborhood Wood Workshop, where people can freely enjoy their hobbies. (Photo by Jae-Hyun Park)

High satisfaction is not limited to seniors. Wistay Byeollnae has gained a reputation in Namyangju as a 'child-friendly apartment.' Parenting often requires help, and here, communal childcare happens naturally. Jeong Hye-min, a woman in her 40s who moved from a neighboring complex, said, "Even when my child goes outside alone, passing aunts and grandfathers watch out for each other, so I feel reassured," adding, "There was even a time when everyone eagerly helped when a child suddenly had a fever and needed fever medicine." Such things were unimaginable in her previous apartment.

Kim Hye-min (pseudonym), a woman in her 30s, recalled a grateful moment, saying, "My second child was hit in the nose by a baseball bat and had to be hospitalized for surgery, but my parents couldn't help. At that time, the residents voluntarily took on the role of guardians and accompanied me to the hospital."

The apartment infrastructure is also designed to be child-friendly. There is an after-school care center called 'Noljaram' for children in third grade and below within the complex. A space for preschool children is also provided. The care center operators work full-time here for a modest activity fee. All of them are residents of Wistay Byeollnae. The city supports the operating costs, and Wistay Byeollnae manages the center under a consignment operation system.

When visiting the center around 4 p.m., lower-grade children were gathered in small groups playing. After school, they come here to spend time with friends, essentially an after-school program. The children were reading comic books or playing with crafts. On a paper attached to the left wall, the 'Children's Autonomous Meeting Agenda' was written in uneven handwriting.

After leaving the center, the reporter visited the 'Neighborhood Bookstore,' a space where anyone can drop by to read books. It was divided into a quiet reading room on the second floor and a bustling first floor filled with children. In one corner of the first floor was the children's workshop 'Moya.' Here, any child aged 8 to 13 can draw pictures and make objects. Inventive creations made by children were displayed on the bookstore shelves?from airplanes made of toilet paper rolls to cars made using wooden sticks and plastic bottle caps. Children's drawings adorned the bookstore walls, adding vibrancy.

A place where neighbors share side dishes, go on outings together on nice days, and adults and children help each other live?Wistay Byeollnae sheds the cold image of towering apartments and fulfills its role as a 'village community.' Lee Sang-woo, executive director of the Wistay Byeollnae Social Cooperative, said, "There are limits to social welfare administrative systems that rely solely on the public sector," adding, "Wistay Byeollnae proves that a natural mutual care system can be created within a living community."

This is the agenda of the Children's Autonomous Committee posted on the wall of the local community center 'Noljaram'. After school, children gather here to set rules and spend time. (Photo by Jae-Hyun Park)