14 Years as the 'Bread King Kim Takgu' Neighborhood... Why Is Cheongju Stuck? [No-Fun City]

[No Fun, Searching for the City's Fun]
<2> Cities Trapped in the 'No Fun City' Frame
④ Suamgol Mural Village, Now an Old Tourist Spot
Cheongju, Caught Off Guard by the 'No Fun City' Meme
Busy Hosting Bread Festivals and Creating a 'Camping Sanctuary'

Editor's NoteAre you familiar with so-called 'No-Jam Cities,' meaning boring cities? These are cities lacking things to do, see, or enjoy, where locals feel bored and outsiders rarely visit. Since 2019, the term 'No-Jam City' has been used on social media to describe various cities. What started as a kind of meme for fun has led local governments in places like Daejeon, Ulsan, Gwangju, and Cheongju to launch 'Fun City Creation Projects.' Are cities labeled 'No-Jam' really dull and boring? What makes a city fun? We want to reflect on the places and spaces where we live.

"Even though it looks like this now, back when 'Kim Takgu' was filmed, people lined up 40 to 50 meters in front of the bakery at the entrance."

Yoon Yeo-jung, in her 60s and a native of Cheongju who serves as the head of the Suamgol neighborhood, reminisced about Suamgol's heyday while looking at the houses under active mural village construction. However, on the morning of the 22nd of last month, the only outsiders in Suamgol were the staff and construction workers involved in the local regeneration project, besides the reporter. When the sound of drills stopped, silence fell immediately without even a dog barking.

Cheongju Suamgol Mural Village, also famous as a drama filming location, has seen a significant decrease in visitors, and the village murals have faded and deteriorated. With support from the city, a village maintenance project has begun as part of an urban regeneration initiative. Photo by Heo Yeonghan

Signs and sculptures promoting the drama filming location are installed in the Suamgol Mural Village in Cheongju. Photo by Heo Young-han

Suamgol is a neighborhood where houses built by refugees during the Korean War (6.25) have been preserved, gaining fame as a filming location for dramas. Many hit dramas from the 2010s, such as 'Bread, Love and Dreams (2010)' which nearly reached a 50% viewership rating, and 'Cain and Abel (2009),' were filmed there. Along with charming murals, it was considered Cheongju's top tourist attraction, drawing continuous visitors.

The view of Suamgol, a representative tourist destination in Cheongju, on the 22nd. Photo by Yoon Seulgi

Yoon said, "Actually, when the mural village was created, some residents opposed it because tourists made noise, but we managed to make the mural village, and there was the sound of people and vitality..." trailing off. Her answer was filled with regret over the now quiet village. Lee Gap-soon (70), whom we met at the Suamgol Tourist Center, said, "In the past, groups from Vietnam, Japan, China would come by express bus for tours, but that's old news now," adding, "These days, foreign tourists come only occasionally."

That day, what filled Suamgol was not tourists' footsteps but the piercing noise of construction. Roofs and various parts had succumbed to time and were collapsing, so urban regeneration work was underway. Old houses at risk of collapse are being replaced with modern ones, walls rebuilt, and murals repainted. It is a project to change a neighborhood frozen in 2010.

The scene of Seongan-gil in Cheongju. It was common for a building to be vacant, and on one street, except for one or two stores, buildings facing each other were also vacant. Photo by Yoon Seulgi

Like Suamgol Losing Its Fame... Similar Situation in Downtown Cheongju

Downtown Cheongju also looked deflated like a balloon losing air. The Culture Manufacturing Plant, transformed from a cigarette factory, is a 'hot place' in Cheongju, housing the temporary city hall, advanced cultural industry complex, a multiplex shopping mall, and Dongbu Warehouse. Bae Yoon-na (19), whom we met there, said, "At least pop-up stores open here. Five years ago, Seongan-gil was decent, but now it's mostly dead," adding, "Friends who like to hang out often go to nearby, busier places like Dunsan-dong in Daejeon."

Kim Sun-woo (30) also said, "We do light dates here, but if we go out to have fun, we go to Daejeon or Sejong," adding, "There are no parks, and downtown is really boring."

The Seongan-gil street, once famous as a cafe street, was exactly as Cheongju citizens described. Even considering the 33-degree Celsius heat on the day of the visit, it was hard to find people walking around. Many buildings were empty. It was common for a building to be vacant, and sometimes entire buildings facing each other on one street were empty except for one or two stores. According to the Korea Real Estate Board's commercial real estate rental trend survey, the vacancy rate for medium to large-sized stores (mainly stores on three or more floors or general buildings exceeding 330㎡) in Seongan-gil in the second quarter of this year rose 2.6 percentage points from the previous quarter to 33.7%.

Even the commercial areas around universities, usually considered prime locations, were exceptions in Cheongju. Along the main road in front of Chungbuk National University’s main gate were Chinese restaurants, spicy stir-fry eateries, and chicken shops, but aside from these, the university commercial area felt deserted. A restaurant sign reading 'Jikji Bone Hangover Soup and Gamjatang,' inspired by Cheongju’s cultural heritage Jikji Simche Yojeol, conveyed the city's identity.

Seongan-gil, a bustling street in Cheongju. Photo by Heo Young-han

The Meme of No-Jam Cities Sparks Change... Cheongju Is Currently Transforming

Cheongju City recognizes the decline in urban vitality and continues efforts to restore everyday fun for its citizens. In fact, Cheongju has many famous bakeries comparable to those in Daejeon. The city has noticed that 'bread pilgrimage (빵지순례, combining bread and pilgrimage)' and cafe tours are popular on social media and is promoting related projects by hosting a dessert bakery festival.

Leveraging its characteristics as a mixed urban-rural complex, Cheongju is also ahead of other local governments in developing a 'camping pilgrimage site.' It is designing the nation's largest complex camping site, scheduled for completion in 2026. Especially, to allow citizens to easily and affordably enjoy performances in daily life, small-scale performance halls and galleries have been created, along with new water leisure experience facilities where people can enjoy kayaking and paddleboarding.

Seongan-gil, a bustling street in Cheongju. Photo by Heo Young-han

"Fun Is Ultimately Relative"... Cheongju Is a Good Place to Live

Although Cheongju dreams of soaring as a 'Fun City,' many residents remain skeptical, feeling it has not yet resonated with them. Complaints of 'No-Jam' arise from comparisons with Seoul, the cultural pinnacle, and due to Cheongju’s geographical proximity to Seoul, such comparisons are easy.

Jeong Hyun-gu (26), a Cheongju native and student at Chungbuk National University known as a 'Cheongjalal' (someone who knows Cheongju well), cited the lack of landmarks or icons compared to Seoul as the reason Cheongju is considered boring. He explained, "There’s no Han River for picnics, fewer art museums than Seoul, and no notable icons. Because there are no distinctive features, it’s called a No-Jam City." However, he also said that the perception of Cheongju as a 'No-Jam City' stems from outsiders, such as people from Seoul who came to work here, judging Cheongju through their own perspectives.

There is also an opinion that if you don’t compare it to Seoul, the formula 'Cheongju = No-Jam City' does not hold. Park Chan-woo (26), from Buyeo, Chungnam, and a student at Chungbuk National University, said, "Still, Cheongju is a livable place," adding, "There are places to hang out like Seongan-gil, and compared to Buyeo, this place is really good." Middle school students visiting the Culture Manufacturing Plant for a field trip from Goesan, Chungbuk, expressed bitterness about the No-Jam City perception, saying, "Is Cheongju bad? Goesan can’t even be compared to Cheongju."

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