Park Seungwon, Mayor of Gwangmyeong, Announces Plan to Attract "K-pop Arena" to Gwangmyeong-Siheung New Town

At the 3rd Anniversary Briefing of the 8th Local Government Term
"Culture Industry as the City's Future Growth Engine"
"Local Currency Issuance Increased from 120 Billion to 500 Billion KRW to Revitalize the Local Economy"

Park Seungwon, mayor of Gwangmyeong City in Gyeonggi Province, has announced plans to attract a "K-pop Arena" to the Gwangmyeong-Siheung New Town, which is the third phase of new towns in the Seoul metropolitan area. Alongside this, the city will increase the issuance of local currency this year from the originally planned 120 billion KRW to 500 billion KRW.

Park Seungwon, mayor of Gwangmyeong City, is explaining the city administration plan at the 3rd anniversary press briefing of the 8th local government term. Provided by Gwangmyeong City

Mayor Park unveiled these plans at a press briefing held on July 10 in the main auditorium of Gwangmyeong City Hall to mark the third anniversary of the 8th local government term.

On this day, Mayor Park presented "global cultural capital" as the future vision for Gwangmyeong. He stated, "We will attract a 'K-pop Arena' with complex cultural functions similar to the Seoul Arts Center as a core hub in Gwangmyeong-Siheung New Town."

The construction of the "K-pop Arena" was one of President Lee Jaemyung's key campaign pledges. Mayor Park explained, "We will continue to negotiate with Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH) to secure the site for the K-pop Arena by utilizing land designated for commercial or self-sufficient facilities, as well as idle sites."

During the briefing, Mayor Park also announced plans to increase the issuance of local currency to 500 billion KRW. This amount is more than four times the city's initial target of 120 billion KRW set at the beginning of the year. He said, "Since the Lee Jaemyung administration has made stabilizing people's livelihoods its top priority, we will significantly expand the issuance of local currency to serve as a catalyst for revitalizing the local economy."

To address insufficient transportation infrastructure, Mayor Park plans to make all-out efforts to have the "Sincheon-Haan-Sillim Line" and the "Metropolitan Express Railway (GTX) D and G lines" included in the government's 5th National Rail Network Plan and the Metropolitan Area Wide-Area Transportation Implementation Plan. In particular, he also proposed a plan to pursue complex development of KTX Gwangmyeong Station as an industrial and economic hub.

In the economic sector, he aims to establish a "local assetization model" in which value created in the region is reinvested locally by fostering the "social economy." Along with this, a new "Investment Promotion Division" will be established to nurture artificial intelligence (AI), mobility, and eco-friendly technologies as specialized new industries for the city.

Mayor Park also expressed his ambition to usher in the "3.0 Era of Citizen Sovereignty" to strengthen citizen-centered city administration. He emphasized, "We will place citizens at the center of all policies and use this as a foundation to prepare for Gwangmyeong's sustainable future."

Mayor Park also mentioned the possibility of running for a third term in next year's local elections. He said, "I don't believe politics has a predetermined end," and added, "I am considering running for a third term to repay the citizens of Gwangmyeong and to ensure the successful completion of the third-phase new town."

Mayor Park stated, "The core sustainable policies that have been consistently pursued over the past seven years of the 7th and 8th local government terms?such as local autonomy and decentralization, lifelong learning, carbon neutrality, resource circulation, and garden city initiatives?will become the city's competitive edge in preparing for the next 100 years." He added, "We will do our utmost to realize a sustainable development city where everyone prospers."