Establishment of the 'Mid- to Long-Term Development Plan for Expanding Sports Facilities'
Expansion by Living Zones until 2035
Public sports facilities in Yongsan-gu, Seoul (District Mayor Park Hee-young) will be significantly expanded, increasing by nearly 50% within the next 10 years. On the 7th, Yongsan-gu announced that it is implementing the "Mid- to Long-term Development Plan for Sports Facility Expansion," which includes increasing the current 31 public sports facilities to 45 by 2035.
Expanding the infrastructure for community sports is one of Mayor Park Hee-young's key pledges in the 8th local government term and will mostly be achieved by utilizing donated facilities. By region, in the eastern Hannam living zone (4.29 million m²), two multipurpose gymnasiums (comprehensive sports facilities) will be built; in the western Cheongpa-Wonhyo living zone (2.93 million m²), three facilities including an outdoor futsal field, a children (youth) sports center, and an indoor tennis court will be added; in the southern Ichon-Hangang living zone (9.78 million m²), seven facilities including an indoor futsal field and multipurpose gymnasiums will be constructed; and in the northern Huam-Yongsan living zone (4.87 million m²), two new facilities such as a public indoor swimming pool will be established.
In particular, the district has eased regulations such as floor area ratio and required developers to install sports facilities in connection with various development projects within the area, including the Hannam Redevelopment Promotion District (Hannam 2 and 5 Redevelopment Promotion Zones), Yongsan Railway Site Special Planning District, Ichon 1 Special Planning District, and Munbae District Special Planning District. In 2020, the district created the Hangang-ro fitness center using the same method, and recently secured the Hyochang badminton court through the redevelopment project of Hyochang 6 District (Yongsan Desiang Foret), which has been opened to residents.
Efforts are also being made to utilize and open existing facilities such as schools and private facilities. Through the "School Manager" project, school gyms and playgrounds are opened to residents on weekends when there are no classes, and personnel are supported to manage these facilities. Additionally, usage fees are partially subsidized for community sports clubs that use school sports facilities.
The utilization rate of sports facilities within Yongsan Park is being increased, currently operating soccer, baseball, and tennis classes at the "Yongsan Children's Garden" sports field. The district continuously expands the usage rate for residents in consultation with the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport and Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH), which operate the facilities. Furthermore, through a Seoul city public contest project, the district operates the "Hotdool Hotdool Seoul Early Childhood Sports Team" linked with private facilities. The participants number about 300 children aged 3 to 5 years.
This plan is based on the results of the "Yongsan-gu Mid- to Long-term Development Plan for Sports Facility Expansion Study," conducted last year by Yongsan-gu in collaboration with the Urban Management Research Institute.
Mayor Park Hee-young stated, "To expand the insufficient sports facilities in the region, we have established and are promoting a total of 21 tasks divided into short-, medium-, and long-term phases. We will also pay attention to balanced allocation by region so that all residents can access sports facilities within a 15-minute walk."
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