Review of Historical and Cultural Tourism Project Leveraging Region with Most Presidential Memorial Facilities
Feasibility Study Including Project Appropriateness, Location, and Resident Survey Scheduled for August
Creating Symbolic Cultural Space for Unity Beyond Political and Ideological Conflicts to Serve as History and Education Venue
Mapo-gu (Mayor Park Gang-su) announced that it will promote a feasibility study for the "Harmony Street Creation Project," aiming to achieve "harmony" beyond political conflicts and divisions by leveraging its advantage as the region with the most presidential memorial facilities in history.
Mapo-gu, which has the most presidential memorial facilities nationwide, has enacted the "Ordinance on the Memorial Projects for Former Presidents of Mapo-gu, Seoul," and is implementing policy projects to commemorate the achievements of former presidents and to inherit and develop their spirit.
Looking at projects by local governments supporting former presidential memorial facilities nationwide, most are limited to preserving birthplaces or operating memorial halls in the regions where the presidents originated.
However, Mapo-gu has a unique cultural and historical characteristic as it hosts various memorial facilities regardless of the presidents' regions of origin, such as the former President Choi Kyu-ha's residence, the President Park Chung-hee Memorial Hall, and the President Kim Dae-jung Library.
The district expects that by creating a symbolic historical and cultural space where former presidents gather in one place, it will become a new cultural tourism resource utilized as a venue for history education themed around presidents.
The Harmony Street envisioned by the district will include relief sculptures and plaques of nine deceased presidents from the 1st to the 19th presidents, as well as a comprehensive information center for souvenir sales.
Although some suggested installing sculptures only of the three presidents related to Mapo, the district planned to install sculptures of all deceased former presidents in one place to symbolically embody the meaning of "harmony."
Since there are currently few idle sites in the area, the project site will be selected after the feasibility study.
The feasibility study for the "Harmony Street Creation Project" will be conducted from August with a project budget of 40 million KRW, allocated as a supplementary budget after deliberation by the Mapo District Council.
The tasks of this study include assessing the project's appropriateness, feasibility, location, resident surveys, and expert consultations.
In particular, through resident surveys and expert consultations on the creation project, the district plans to keep all possibilities open and decide the project's direction after sufficient collection of opinions so that all residents can empathize.
A district official said, "Some media reported that Mapo-gu is promoting the project by reducing disaster contingency funds, but since the district office is the executing agency without authority to review or approve the budget, this is not true," adding, "On the contrary, the disaster contingency fund was increased by 4.2 billion KRW from the existing 5.5 billion KRW to 9.7 billion KRW."
Park Gang-su, Mayor of Mapo-gu, said, "Our people have long been exhausted by opposing political conflicts," and added, "Harmony Street reflects the spirit of the times that overcomes political views and ideological differences inherited from the past and leaps toward a better future with the national desire for 'harmony.' It is not a political space to debate the merits and faults of former presidents but a symbolic space creation project that economically and historically reinterprets the historical and cultural resources of Mapo-gu. We hope it will be understood as such."
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