Daegu City Councilor Lee Jaesook Proposes Building Arena Concert Hall for 20,000 People on 40,000㎡ Site After Cancellation of IKEA Store

Proposal for Five-Minute Speech at Temporary Session

Daegu City Council member Lee Jaesook (People Power Party, Dong-gu 4) urged the revitalization of the region through the construction of a large-scale cultural facility at the site where the IKEA store entry was canceled, during a five-minute free speech at the 2nd plenary session of the 310th temporary meeting held on the 17th.

Lee Jaesook stated, "At the end of last year, when IKEA withdrew its plan to build a Daegu store, the anticipated job creation for Daegu citizens and opportunities for local businesses were lost, which is deeply regrettable," and added, "Daegu City should have shown more initiative in attracting the IKEA Daegu store. Due to the cancellation, more than 40,000 square meters of land remain undeveloped for an extended period," expressing her concerns.

Jaesook Lee Daegu City Councilor

Lee suggested, "Let us turn the undeveloped land in Ansim New Town into an opportunity by introducing cultural facilities to drive regional growth."

Referring to the case of 'Seoul Arena,' a music-specialized performance venue, Lee explained, "As the competitiveness of Korean music content rises with K-POP and more large-scale performances by overseas artists are held, the need for arena-level venues that can accommodate 10,000 to 20,000 people is increasing." She continued, "Currently, Inspire Arena in Incheon is the only such venue in Korea. Other local governments have also signed MOUs with foreign companies to build arena venues," and asked about Daegu City's intentions.

In conclusion, Lee said, "Daegu, designated as a UNESCO City of Music, hosts various genres of music festivals," and proposed, "If a professional music performance venue is established, it will not only enhance citizens' cultural enjoyment but also greatly contribute to the local economy." She added, "Although it is unfortunate that the IKEA entry was canceled, this is an opportunity to transform the site into a more valuable space. I urge Daegu City to develop specific methods and plans to seize this opportunity and enable the construction of an arena performance venue through private investment."