‘Busan Munhakgwan’, Established as a World-Class Literature Museum

Busan Literature Museum Construction Promotion Committee Finalizes Plan in November 2023

Geumjeong-gu 'Meeting Plaza' Area ... Total Floor Area 4,000㎡, Project Cost 29 Billion KRW

Mayor Park Hyung-jun: "Building a More Unique and Beautiful Literature Museum with Greater Speed"

Busan City has decided to accept the final plan determined by the Construction Promotion Committee, composed of Busan literary figures and experts in the field of literature in November 2023, to expedite the long-awaited project of the 'Busan Literature Museum' managed by Busan writers.

Mayor Park Hyung-jun has been discussing the construction of the Busan Literature Museum since December 2021, when he was elected in a by-election, by forming the Busan Literature Museum Construction Promotion Committee to realize the 20-year-long wish of the Busan literary community.

The site for the 'Busan Literature Museum' was considered among locations such as Children's Grand Park and Eden Amusement Park, but after comprehensively considering issues such as parking difficulties, limited site size, concerns about forest damage, and accessibility problems due to steep slopes, the Construction Promotion Committee finally decided in November last year to locate it at 'Man-nam Square' in Geumjeong-gu.

The scale of the museum was confirmed to have a total floor area of 4,000㎡ and a project budget of 29 billion KRW.

Subsequently, while carrying out budget procedures for the construction project, the Busan Public Investment Management Center of the Busan Institute conducted a 'Feasibility Study for the Construction of the Busan Literature Museum' from early this year following the preliminary review of the new project.

However, due to difficulties in securing economic feasibility (B/C 0.2), it was anticipated that passing the central investment review by the Ministry of the Interior and Safety would be challenging. Therefore, the Busan Public Investment Management Center proposed a plan to reduce the project scale by about half to the city, and the city shared this information with the Construction Promotion Committee in August.

Then, at the Construction Promotion Committee meeting held in October, the city presented an alternative plan for the 'Busan Literature Museum' that could respond to the central investment review: a reduced scale of 3,600㎡ total floor area, which is 400㎡ smaller than the original 4,000㎡ plan, located in the Man-nam Square area.

During this process, the 7th Central-Local Cooperation Meeting proposed and approved an agenda on the 'Improvement Plan for the Local Finance Investment Review System.' Currently, the legislative notice for the revision of the enforcement decree is underway (October 18 to November 27, 2024), and once the related laws are amended, the project can proceed as originally planned without adjusting the project scale.

The 'Improvement Plan for the Local Finance Investment Review System' was proposed by the Korea Association of Governors (Chairman Mayor Park Hyung-jun). The main content is to adjust the threshold for central investment review by the Ministry of the Interior and Safety for cultural and sports facility projects funded by local governments themselves from the current 3 to 4 billion KRW to projects over 30 billion KRW. (For provincial and municipal governments, the threshold is 20 billion KRW.)

Once the related laws are amended, the Busan Literature Museum construction project, with a total budget of 29 billion KRW, will be subject to the city's own investment review instead of the central investment review.

Recently, there have been some proposals for a third construction site such as the North Port, but since the North Port is under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries and the Busan Port Authority (BPA), securing the site would require consultations with central government agencies, which could take a long time.

As the 'Busan Literature Museum' is a long-cherished project of the Busan literary community, the city plans to proceed with the project based on the Construction Promotion Committee's decision in November 2023 to create a world-class literature museum both architecturally and in terms of exhibition content. The construction is scheduled to begin in 2027 and be completed in 2028.

The city will proceed with administrative procedures as quickly as possible, reorganize the implementation roadmap and subcommittees for the Busan Literature Museum construction, and swiftly advance the remaining steps.

The 'Busan Literature Museum' will consist of literary exhibition rooms, storage facilities, creative studios, lecture rooms, curatorial offices, and a book caf?. It is expected to make a significant contribution to systematically collecting, preserving, and promoting Busan's literary and humanistic heritage.

The city plans to develop various contents such as exhibitions, viewings, lectures, and creative experiences through the operation of a content subcommittee, creating a new cultural hub where all citizens can easily visit and appreciate Busan literature.

Mayor Park Hyung-jun said, “We will accelerate the project to repay the enthusiasm of Busan literary figures who have shown great interest in the construction of the 'Busan Literature Museum.' Thanks to the efforts of the Korea Association of Governors, cultural and sports facility projects under 30 billion KRW funded by local governments will be subject to the city's own investment review instead of the Ministry of the Interior and Safety's central investment review. Early next year, after the city's own investment review, we will establish a shared property management plan, obtain the city council's consent, and proceed with design through an international competition. We will build the 'Busan Literature Museum' as an original and beautiful world-class literature museum for Busan literary figures and citizens.”