Cheonho-dong Illegal Street Food Stalls Renovated After 40 Years

Initial Strong Response to New Pocha Occurrence Monitoring

The last remaining illegal street stalls on Rodeo Street in Cheonho-dong, Gangdong-gu, Seoul have been completely removed. Gangdong-gu has established special maintenance plans every year to manage illegal street stalls, receiving support from police personnel to carry out administrative actions such as forced removal, and has encouraged voluntary dismantling through continuous guidance and fines.

As a result, the number of illegal street stalls, which was about 20, decreased to 3 at the beginning of this year, and recently, all three remaining street stalls on Rodeo Street in Cheonho-dong have been removed.

The appearance of illegal street stalls on Cheonho-dong Rodeo Street before cleanup. Provided by Gangdong-gu.

The street stalls in Cheonho-dong appeared in 1980 and for over 40 years illegally occupied roads and sidewalks, causing inconvenience to residents' passage as well as hygiene and environmental issues, with continuous requests for crackdowns and complaints.

There was strong resistance from the street stall operators during the crackdown process. However, the district office consistently met with them to explain the necessity of maintenance, and along with this, guided them on livelihood support, welfare services linked to self-reliance, and reemployment support, which led to voluntary cooperation from the operators.

Going forward, the district will continue regular patrols of the area and maintain close communication with nearby merchant associations to prevent the recurrence of illegal commercial activities. Additionally, in the event of new street stalls appearing, they plan to mobilize police personnel for strong initial responses such as forced removal and prosecution to suppress the emergence of street stalls.

Kim Juno, Director of Urban Landscape Division of Gangdong-gu, said, “Through this street stall maintenance, we hope to help successfully complete the redevelopment project of Rodeo Street in Cheonho-dong and bring vitality to Cheonho-dong,” adding, “We will continue to make active efforts to create a safe and pleasant urban landscape.”