Interview with Seung-ro Lee, Mayor of Seongbuk-gu
Mediating Redevelopment Construction Cost Negotiations through the Conflict Resolution Committee
"260,000 Signatures for the Re-promotion of the Gangbuk Transversal Line"
Local Love Gift Certificates Prove Most Effective for Reviving Neighborhood Economies on the Brink of Collapse
Seung-ro Lee, the mayor of Seongbuk-gu (65), often starts his mornings by cleaning the neighborhood. He sets specific dates to thoroughly inspect various neighborhoods. Cleaning is not his sole purpose; during these times, he meets local residents, listens to their complaints, and personally surveys the alleys.
Since the beginning of this year, he has been visiting three to four senior centers daily. Upon entering each senior center, he performs a traditional New Year's bow. Although Mayor Lee is well past his sixtieth birthday, he says he is still the youngest among the seniors at these centers. He plans to visit all 183 senior centers within Seongbuk-gu by the end of next month.
The nickname of Seungro Lee, the mayor of Seongbuk-gu who emphasizes being on the ground, is "The Neighborhood District Mayor Uncle." He also likes being called that. On the 19th, on the conference table in the mayor's office where the interview took place, there was a Statue of Peace honoring the victims of the Japanese military's sexual slavery. Provided by Seongbuk-gu.
He reviews the stories he hears from alleys, senior centers, and the on-site mayor’s office with his staff to reflect them in policies. When seniors across 20 neighborhoods unanimously request “please create some jobs,” he focuses on job creation projects. In response to the outcry from small business owners, he issues local love gift certificates, and he listens carefully to parents’ concerns to consider incorporating childcare or library policies.
On the 19th, during the interview, Mayor Lee rushed breathlessly into his office and immediately brought up the issue of Jangwi 4 District (Jangwi Xi Radiant). He said, “Thanks to the mediation efforts of the district’s conflict resolution committee and coordinators dispatched by Seoul City, the construction cost conflict was resolved after 14 months.” He added, “Many redevelopment and reconstruction sites are struggling with construction cost increases, so it is a great relief that this was resolved without hindering the move-in of thousands of residents.”
Jangwi 4 District is a large complex of 2,840 households scheduled for move-in at the end of March this year. The move-in was at risk of delay due to conflicts over construction costs between the union and the contractor, GS Construction, but a dramatic agreement was reached the day before.
Mayor Lee said, “I told them to lock the meeting room door and not come out until an agreement was reached.” He added, “The contractor must present grounds and figures that residents can accept, and only receive the unavoidable increase in construction costs. They should not try to make extra profits by raising construction costs.” He also said, “The conflict resolution committee within the Seongbuk-gu redevelopment and reconstruction rapid promotion team continues to produce results.”
GS Construction demanded an increase of 77.2 billion KRW in construction costs from the union at the end of January last year. After negotiations, the contractor lowered the amount to 48.2 billion KRW, but the talks broke down. From the second half of last year, coordinators dispatched by Seongbuk-gu Office and Seoul City (experts in related fields) negotiated but failed to narrow the differences. This year, the union sent an SOS again, and the district’s conflict resolution committee, composed of Seoul City public lawyers, estimated contribution verification committee members, and urban and architectural joint committee members, participated in the negotiations.
They finally agreed to increase the total construction cost by 30.5 billion KRW. Mayor Lee said, “Last year, the conflict resolution committee played a major role in resolving construction cost conflicts in Anam 2 District, and the year before in Samseon 5 District.”
Since construction costs are increasing, it is easy to be criticized, and even good mediation might just break even. Mayor Lee waved off this notion. He said, “Seongbuk-gu has 125 redevelopment and reconstruction projects, the most in the country. Residents are likely to face such conflicts in the future, and only a trustworthy district office and external experts without vested interests can reduce conflicts and benefit residents.”
Mayor Lee is also fully committed to the re-promotion of the Gangbuk Transversal Line. In October last year, the “Gangbuk Transversal Line Rapid Re-promotion Pan-Citizen Signature Campaign” aimed for 100,000 signatures but received 260,000 (61.5% of residents), far exceeding expectations. The will to realize the project was conveyed to Seoul City, the National Assembly’s Transportation Committee, and the Seoul Metropolitan Council.
Recently, Jongno-gu and Seodaemun-gu also joined the signature campaign. The Gangbuk Transversal Line is a large-scale transportation network extending 25.72 km, connecting northeastern and southwestern Seoul, linking Cheongnyangni, Jongam, Gireum, Jeongneung, Pyeongchang-dong, Hongje, Digital Media City, Mok-dong, and more.
Seung-ro Lee, Mayor of Seongbuk District (right in the photo), handed over a petition signed by residents expressing their determination for the swift re-promotion of the Gangbuk Transversal Line to Ho-jeong Choi, Chairperson of the Seoul Metropolitan Council, on the 4th. Provided by Seongbuk District.
Mayor Lee repeatedly emphasized that the activation of local love gift certificates is a major force supporting the neighborhood commercial districts on the brink of collapse. He said, “It has already been proven by statistics and the reactions and cases of residents met in the alleys that local love gift certificates have a positive effect on the local economy and neighborhood commercial districts.” He stressed, “Local currency acts as a primer, and the government and Seoul City should proactively expand discount rates to ensure the neighborhood economy circulates positively.”
Seongbuk-gu has issued local love gift certificates worth 244.6 billion KRW over the past five years and plans to issue 71 billion KRW worth this year. This issuance scale is the second largest among Seoul’s 25 autonomous districts, following Gangnam-gu (74 billion KRW).
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
