[New Year's Address] Lee Chung-woo, Mayor of Yeoju City, "Proclaiming 2025 as the Inaugural Year of Tourism... Fostering the Tourism Industry"

Significant Changes in 2 Years 6 Months... New Office Construction Starts This Year, Opening in 2028
Resolution of Industrial Water Supply Issues for Yongin Semiconductor Industrial Complex Development
Supplemented Plans for Namhangang Suspension Bridge Construction... Scheduled to Open in May

Dear and respected 120,000 Yeoju citizens! And to the 1,200 public officials! The first year of 2025, the Year of Eulsa, has dawned. I wish that all your hopes come true and that this year is filled with health and happiness.

Lee Chung-woo, Mayor of Yeoju City. Provided by Yeoju City

This year will be a challenging time with many trials and challenges, making it more dynamic than any other year. When I think about the new developments that will unfold in Yeoju this year, I feel energized. This overwhelming emotion stems from the achievements we have made so far, but more importantly, it is because I hold an unwavering belief that no matter how difficult the situation, if we unite our will and work together with the citizens, the world will change for the better.

Think back to Yeoju two and a half years ago. While we agreed on the need to revive the struggling local economy, we lacked concrete plans or clear alternatives. The industrial complex development project for attracting companies stalled due to complicated regulations and procedures, losing its initial goals and dragging on. The city hall relocation issue was delayed at the planning stage and eventually returned to square one. The livestock manure treatment facility faced humiliation by having to return government subsidies already received because the site was not finalized.

The issue of industrial water supply for the Yongin Semiconductor Industrial Complex was reduced to an agreement among stakeholders amid administrative indifference, accumulating only local dissatisfaction. Although we dreamed of attracting tourists, we did not know how to implement it, and the suspension bridge had only its piers erected with no completion date in sight.

Dear and respected 120,000 Yeoju citizens! And to the 1,200 public officials! Recently, the interest of Yeoju citizens has changed. Wherever citizens gather, they are curious about the schedules and changes of upcoming projects and contribute new ideas.

Yeoju has transformed significantly in the past two and a half years! The contentious city hall construction was decided through a public discussion process following the launch of the 8th elected administration, selecting the Gabdong area as the site for the new city hall. The new city hall construction project, which has passed the preliminary feasibility study, has finalized the basic design through a public contest. I thank the citizens who contributed their wisdom once again.

If the new city hall breaks ground as planned in the second half of this year, citizens will have the new city hall they desire by 2028. The public livestock manure treatment facility has selected Yulgeuk-ri as the final site and secured 44 billion KRW in project funds through a Ministry of Environment public contest. Starting this year, with the establishment of the basic plan and environmental impact assessment, the livestock manure public treatment facility, a long-awaited project for the livestock industry, will be completed by 2027.

The industrial water supply issue for the Yongin Semiconductor Industrial Complex has led to a win-win agreement with SK Hynix through active interest and participation from all citizens, resulting in regulatory improvements and industrial complex development for company attraction. Yeoju, which is promoting the development of 16 industrial complexes totaling 960,000㎡, received approval last year for the designation plans of seven complexes totaling 420,000㎡, including the Ganam Semiconductor General Industrial Complex. Yeoju is swiftly proceeding with procedures, expecting to attract cutting-edge eco-friendly companies and create new jobs.

The construction of the Namhangang Suspension Bridge is undergoing supplementary planning and budget additions, with landscape lighting installation and auxiliary works being carried out to meet the May opening.

There are also remarkable achievements in projects to revive the local economy. The Yeoju Premium Outlets attract over 10 million visitors annually. The win-win voucher project returns a portion of the amount spent by these visitors as local gift certificates to revitalize the local commercial district. Shinsegae Simon has issued 500 million KRW worth of local gift certificates so far, which have recently shown a high redemption rate of over 80%, providing more support to the local economy than expected. Yeoju has significantly increased this year's project budget to 1 billion KRW in consultation with Shinsegae Simon. Additionally, Yeoju is expanding the voucher project to include golf course and camping site visitors within the city to provide practical benefits to both visitors and local businesses.

Last summer, the temporary opening of the water playground, part of the Yeoju Citizen Park project, received great love. Starting this year, when Yeoju Citizen Park officially opens, it will become a new landmark where both citizens and visitors enjoy and stay.

Urban development projects such as Changdong District, Jeoncheon District, and Hyeonam 1 District for pleasant residential environments and systematic urban expansion, as well as station area development projects like Yeoju 2nd Station Area, Ganam Station Area, and Sejong Daewangneung Station Area, are steadily continuing to solidify the foundation for regional development.

Yeoju Urban Corporation, launched last year, began construction of the Ohak-dong Cultural Welfare Center and was approved by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport as the general project manager for the ‘Jungang-dong 1 District Urban Regeneration New Deal Project.’ Starting this year, it will also participate in the Ganam Industrial Complex development, efficiently carrying out regional development projects. The development profits from this will be reinvested in Yeoju to contribute to residents' welfare and the local economy.

Creating a welfare city where no one is marginalized or discriminated against is the area Yeoju has devoted the most effort to. Having entered a super-aged society early, Yeoju has received certification as an Age-friendly City from the World Health Organization (WHO), actively responding to the era of healthy longevity. This year is the final year of the ‘Age-friendly City Creation 3-Year Plan,’ which has a budget exceeding 100 billion KRW. We will expand senior job opportunities and various social activities to create a vibrant city for the elderly.

We will continuously build transportation infrastructure that allows seniors to use it safely and conveniently, including free city bus transportation support for seniors aged 70 and over, expansion of senior protection zones, replacement and expansion of safety CCTV, maintenance of traffic safety facilities, improvement of bus stop convenience facilities, and increased introduction of low-floor buses.

Hyeonam Park Golf Course operates 63 holes with an additional 27 holes expanded, and the newly established 18-hole park golf course in Jeomdong-myeon has been temporarily operating since last November. When the Daesin-myeon Park Golf Course expands to 36 holes, Yeoju will have a total of 117 park golf holes. Yeoju will also improve efficiency in the operation and management of sports facilities.

Since last year, the demand-responsive ‘Ddok Bus’ has been operating to facilitate mobility for citizens in public transportation vulnerable areas. Currently, two zones are in operation, and we will consult with higher authorities to expand it to the entire Yeoju area. Additionally, we will completely reorganize city bus routes to increase public transportation usage and strengthen citizens' transportation welfare.

Dear and respected 120,000 Yeoju citizens! And to the 1,200 public officials! There is much to do this year, and the projects always require more funding. However, finances are never abundant. The total size of the 2025 main budget, including general and other special accounts and public enterprise special accounts, has been set at 980.9 billion KRW, a decrease of 56.4 billion KRW from last year. We will not merely reduce expenditures or eliminate regulations but will execute the budget productively and efficiently for the livelihood and future of Yeoju.

First, to ensure sustainable agriculture, we will enhance the competitiveness of Yeoju-grown agricultural products. Yeoju is the only ‘Rice Industry Special Zone’ in the country. Support projects for agricultural materials and soil conditioners to reduce rice production costs, as well as rice variety improvement projects, will continue this year. Last year, Yeoju launched the Rice Industry Special Zone Committee. It will carefully review the direction of Yeoju’s rice industry and devise ways to further elevate the status of Yeoju rice.

We will actively address labor shortages caused by the aging and decline of the agricultural population through the Rural Job Support Center. Yeoju was selected for the Agricultural Product Distribution Support Center construction project and secured 1.7 billion KRW in national funds. With this budget, we will build a food center to create a circulation system where safe food produced locally is primarily consumed locally, and we will further strengthen integrated distribution to secure sales channels for agricultural products.

Through the ‘Yeoju Agricultural Industry Joint Brand Activation Center’ established last year, we will promote the sales of major agricultural products including Yeoju rice and enhance the brand value of Yeoju agricultural products through active marketing.

Second, we will strengthen the competitiveness of the local economy through downtown revitalization. To address concerns about downtown decline accelerated by the city hall relocation, Yeoju has established a downtown revitalization plan based on the strategy of attraction, inflow, linkage, and diffusion. We will create attractive spaces and content where people can gather, such as symbolic streets and the Namhangang Terrace, to build a city where people want to stay and live.

We have also held citizen briefings on the downtown revitalization plan and will continue to gather diverse demands and opinions from citizens. The voucher project and tourism gift certificate distribution project implemented by Yeoju will create great synergy with the downtown revitalization efforts.

We signed a business agreement for urban regeneration of the Gi Silk site with Theborn Korea, operated by CEO Baek Jong-won. Yeoju is the only city in the metropolitan area with such an agreement with Theborn Korea. We will broadly consult with CEO Baek Jong-won on specialized menu development using local agricultural and specialty products, entrepreneurship and workforce training, and regional specialized projects linking the food service industry with cultural tourism resources.

Third, we will promote the tourism industry as a key project to revitalize the local economy. Yeoju has declared this year as the “Year One of Yeoju Tourism” in line with the completion of the suspension bridge and will expand tourism infrastructure centered on the suspension bridge and Silleuksa Temple tourist site. Once the night landscape lighting installation and auxiliary works for the suspension bridge are completed, it will undergo preliminary safety inspections and trial operations, with an opening ceremony planned for May to coincide with the opening day of the Ceramic Festival.

We will develop the north and south ends around the suspension bridge into distinctive tourist zones, making it a landmark of Yeoju tourism. The north end will feature various attractions and experiences such as day and night performances, small business flea markets, agricultural product sales, and food stores.

The south end, where Geumeunmorae Park is located, is planning a condominium development and a district unit plan to attract private investment.

At the Silleuksa tourist complex, we will complete a traveler center that serves as both an information and accommodation facility, reconfiguring Yeoju as a ‘stay-type tourism city.’ We will expand the scope of the tourism industry by creating an eco-friendly theme park with themed forest trails, walking paths, and campgrounds in the Gangcheon Island area, which boasts outstanding natural scenery. The attraction of Gangcheon Station, which all Yeoju citizens desire, will not only make Gangcheon Island a tourist attraction but also accelerate regional development. We ask for your united support.

Since the launch of the 8th elected administration, Yeoju has quickly formed a ‘one team’ aligned with our goals and is reborn as an organization leading change and innovation. The power that makes life worth living for all of us is not new declarations or slogans but the honesty, dedication, fairness, responsibility, and love for Yeoju that still live and stir within us.

The plans and preparations we have made will never waver or stop. Remember that if we all unite and execute what we intend to do, we have the strength to overcome any crisis. In the new year of 2025, let us once again show the world the united strength of Yeoju citizens who can easily overcome any trial. Thank you!