Gwangju Dong-gu "Decrease in Vacancy Rate of Chungjang-ro Commercial Buildings"

Effects of Commercial District Renaissance and Participation in Rent Reduction

On the 3rd, Dong-gu, Gwangju announced that the vacancy rate of medium-to-large commercial spaces in the Chungjang-ro area has decreased for two consecutive quarters.

This is attributed to the ‘Commercial District Renaissance’ project, which Dong-gu has been promoting since 2022 with a total budget of 10 billion KRW over five years to revive the stagnant Chungjang-ro commercial district, as well as the effect of landlords lowering rents.

According to data published by the Korea Real Estate Board, the vacancy rate of medium-to-large commercial spaces?defined as buildings with three or more floors or a total floor area exceeding 330㎡ (100 pyeong)?in the Chungjang and Geumnam-ro areas decreased by 6.05%, from 31.02% in the first quarter of this year to 24.97% in the third quarter. This is the lowest vacancy rate since 24.03% in the first quarter of 2022.

The vacancy rate of medium-to-large commercial spaces is one of the representative indicators reflecting economic conditions, and a decrease for two consecutive quarters indicates a rapid recovery of the commercial district. Additionally, the vacancy rate of small-scale commercial spaces?defined as buildings with two or fewer floors and a total floor area under 330㎡ (100 pyeong)?also slightly decreased from 16.09% in the previous quarter to 15.26%.

Chungjang-ro, known as the ‘largest commercial district in Honam,’ has long enjoyed prosperity as Gwangju’s top downtown area and representative commercial district. However, due to internal and external factors such as changes in online and offline consumption trends, urban hollowing, and the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic, population decline and increasing vacancy rates have led to a vicious cycle.

In response, Dong-gu is accelerating efforts to revitalize the commercial district through initiatives such as the monthly ‘Raon Festa,’ four concept alley tours, ‘Chungjang’s House (ZIP)’ to extend visitors’ stay time in the commercial district, the establishment of a ‘K-POP Shared Cafe’ to foster unique culture among the MZ generation through K-POP content, and the creation of anchor stores and village department stores.

In particular, Dong-gu is promoting the entry of anchor stores such as popular franchise food and beverage and fashion businesses that attract young generations to Chungjang-ro 1, 2, and 3-ga, while conducting a new vitality project in Chungjang-ro 4 and 5-ga to attract stores that bring continuous day and night foot traffic, continuously striving to reduce vacant stores.

Im Taek, Mayor of Dong-gu, emphasized, “We are dedicating ourselves to various projects to utilize vacant stores in the commercial district in line with the recent gradual increase in new store openings in Chungjang-ro,” adding, “We will consider and implement more diverse projects to restore Chungjang-ro’s former glory.”