Public Water Recreation Facility Covering 19,000㎡ to Open in Dongtan, Hwaseong

Hwaseong City to Open 'Dongtan Family Pool' for Trial Operation on July 19
Proactive Administration Transforms Neighborhood Park into Water Recreation Park

A large-scale public water recreation facility covering 19,000㎡ will open on July 19 in Dongtan 1 New Town, Hwaseong, Gyeonggi Province.

A 19,000㎡ scale 'Dongtan Family Pool' built on the site of Cultural Park No.1 in Dongtan 1 New City, Hwaseong. It will be open to the public for free starting from the 19th. Provided by Hwaseong City

On July 14, Hwaseong City announced that the family-oriented water facility, 'Dongtan Family Pool,' located at 654 Seokwoo-dong, will begin trial operations on July 19.

Unlike most water facilities operated by local governments, which are relatively small in scale, this water park, built on the 74,232㎡ site of Cultural Park No.1 Phase 2 in Dongtan 1 New Town, covers an area of 19,000㎡.

The park features a variety of family-friendly water attractions, including an aqua pool with a depth of 0.87 meters (2,990㎡), a children's pool (254㎡), a floating river pool (765㎡), a healing hot water pool (116㎡), and the Forest Blue musical fountain.

Additional amenities include the 'Riverfront Observatory Maru' (422㎡), which is equipped with an observatory, lounge, restrooms, and management office. Other facilities include one external restroom, two changing rooms, one outdoor shower, an air curtain, 52 parasols, 17 pergolas, 31 sunshades, and 19 benches.

The city will open the water facility to citizens free of charge until August 31. Operating hours are from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. The facility operates for 50 minutes each hour, followed by a 10-minute break, and is closed for maintenance from noon to 1 p.m. every day. The facility is regularly closed on Mondays.

Reservations can be made by anyone through the Naver reservation system. However, during this trial period, the number of visitors will be limited to about 500 people per day. Reservations can be made starting at midnight, three days prior to the intended date of use. If a reservation is made but not used, further reservations will be restricted for 10 days.

Hwaseong Mayor Jung Myungkeun is inspecting the construction status at the 'Dongtan Family Pool' site in Dongtan 1 New Town, Hwaseong. Photo by Hwaseong City

Meanwhile, the creation of this water facility is being credited to the city's proactive administration.

Initially, the site was planned by Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH), the developer of the new town, to be a general neighborhood park. However, in December 2019, the city requested LH to revise the plan to a 'water recreation specialized park' in response to citizen demand. After negotiations between the two parties, LH agreed in July of the following year to include water facilities in the park plan.

During the construction process, the city also insisted on expanding key facilities for residents' convenience. LH's original plan allowed for sunshades to accommodate only about 27% of the total capacity (233 out of 850 people), but at the city's request, this was increased to accommodate 70-80% of all visitors.

Jung Myungkeun, Mayor of Hwaseong, stated, "Through proactive administration, we were able to transform a site initially planned as a general park into a specialized water recreation space to meet citizen demand." He added, "We will thoroughly inspect every aspect of Dongtan Family Pool, including water quality, safety, cooling, and convenience facilities, to ensure nothing is overlooked."