Ikwon Jae, Mayor of Osan, "Paid Transfer of Shares in Nong-eochon Corporation Woonamtteul AI City Needed"

Visit to the National Assembly to Request Support from Assemblyman Kim Seon-gyo
"Seorangji, Need to Lift Agricultural Promotion Area Designation"

Lee Gwon-jae, Mayor of Osan City, visited the National Assembly to request support for securing shares in the Unamtteul AI City urban development project managed by Osan Urban Corporation.

According to Osan City on the 15th, Mayor Lee visited the National Assembly the previous afternoon and met with Kim Seon-kyo, a member of the National Assembly’s Agriculture, Forestry, Livestock, Food, and Maritime Affairs Committee from the People Power Party. During the meeting, Mayor Lee asked Kim to persuade the Korea Rural Community Corporation to transfer all of its 19.7% stake in the Unamtteul AI City project to Osan City through a paid transfer.

Lee Gwon-jae (left), Mayor of Osan City, who visited the National Assembly, is requesting support from Kim Seon-kyo, a member of the People Power Party, for the transfer of shares in the Woonamtteul AI City urban development project by the Korea Rural Community Corporation.
[Photo by Osan City]

Earlier, on the 11th, Mayor Lee visited Suwon City Hall and requested Suwon Mayor Lee Jae-jun to transfer the 5.3% stake held by Suwon Urban Corporation in this project to Osan City through a paid transfer.

Mayor Lee asked Assemblyman Kim to act as a bridge to facilitate the transfer of shares from the Rural Community Corporation so that Osan Urban Corporation can take the lead in the Unamtteul AI City project, which is its first project. He also expressed willingness to pay opportunity costs considering the estimated market interest rate if the Rural Community Corporation transfers its shares. Assemblyman Kim reportedly responded that he would convey and explain the city’s proposal well to the Rural Community Corporation.

The Unamtteul AI City is the first development project promoted by Osan Urban Corporation, which was established and registered this month. Initially, Osan City was restricted by public institution regulations and held only a 19.8% stake in this project. However, with the establishment of the Urban Corporation, the city has paved the way to hold up to 50.1% of the shares.

After the Urban Corporation was launched, the city invested 9.9 billion KRW in capital to transfer its 19.8% stake (990 million KRW) to the corporation. The city is now persuading other stakeholders holding public shares, such as Suwon Urban Corporation (5.3%), Pyeongtaek Urban Corporation (5.3%), and Korea Rural Community Corporation (19.7%), to transfer their shares through paid transfers.

During the meeting, Mayor Lee also requested Assemblyman Kim to act as a bridge to facilitate the lifting of agricultural promotion area restrictions and the promotion of a city-led project to create a citizen park around Seorang Reservoir in the Seorang-dong area.

This project involves creating a reservoir deck road, rest areas, nighttime landscape lighting and sculptures, a waterfront observatory, and a waterside stage around Seorang Reservoir. However, the reservoir is designated as an agricultural promotion area to secure agricultural water, which restricts the installation of sculptures and convenience facilities.

Mayor Lee particularly proposed support to promote this project as a direct city project rather than a public institution consignment project, reasoning that pursuing it as a consignment project would incur about 700 million KRW in project fees.