Guri City: "Political Distortion Ignoring Requests for Supplementation"
PFV Director Nomination Followed Proper Procedures... No Special Benefits Provided
Plan to Address Administrative Issues and Proceed Rationally
Guri City Expresses Regret Over Misleading Reports That Cause Public Misunderstanding
Guri City in Gyeonggi Province (Mayor Baek Kyunghyeon) has strongly refuted recent media reports regarding the Guri I-Tower construction project, emphasizing that these reports distort the facts and are based on a political frame.
An official from Guri City stated, "The I-Tower construction project is being pursued to ensure the legitimacy of administrative procedures and the public interest. Reports that frame the project as a conflict between current and former mayors or as being driven by specific political intentions only serve to create unnecessary misunderstandings among citizens."
The Guri I-Tower construction project is being carried out by Guri Urban Corporation, utilizing quasi-residential land in Sutak-dong, lot number 882, which was contributed in kind. In March 2022, a project financing vehicle (PFV) corporation was established and funded to implement the project, and a land purchase agreement was signed in May of the same year. Since then, the project has been undergoing various approval procedures, including a traffic impact assessment.
The initial application for the traffic impact assessment was submitted in May 2022 during the tenure of former Mayor Ahn Seungnam. However, the application was rejected twice, in July and November 2022, due to conflicts with the district unit plan decision map.
In July 2023, the Traffic Impact Assessment Review Committee conditionally approved the project, provided that measures were taken to address traffic congestion at intersections. However, in August 2023, the committee suspended its decision, citing insufficient measures for public pedestrian infrastructure, overall inadequacies in basic facilities, and issues with the approval and administrative procedures.
Notably, Guri I-Tower PFV Co., Ltd. was required to complete registration as a real estate developer?a legal prerequisite for conducting real estate development projects?prior to proceeding with the project. Despite repeated requests from Guri City since March 2024 for the submission of registration documents, the PFV has yet to provide the necessary materials.
Meanwhile, the city has already clearly stated its position, including at a press breakfast on September 12 last year and through media reports and city council inquiries, that it would address the administrative procedural issues of the I-Tower construction project and proceed with the project rationally based on the results of consultations.
Nevertheless, the city criticized expressions such as "it can only be interpreted as the current mayor's neglect of duty to erase the achievements of the former mayor," stating that such claims ignore the efforts to protect the public interest, the official facts, and the procedural legitimacy of the administration. The city described these as distorted assertions that cause misunderstandings among citizens and expressed strong regret over such reporting practices.
Guri City also stated that reports regarding the appointment of PFV directors are inaccurate. According to the city, under the business agreement signed in March 2022, Guri Urban Corporation is entitled to nominate two of the five PFV board members. When one of the existing directors resigned, Guri Urban Corporation's management independently recommended Mr. A as the successor.
Mr. A was registered as a non-executive director and attended only two board meetings during his entire tenure. Other than a nominal allowance for his attendance, he received no financial benefit whatsoever. The city argued that reports suggesting the city intended to involve a specific individual for an extended period to provide financial compensation are a clear distortion of the facts.
An official from Guri City stated, "Despite having explained the facts multiple times, the repetition of the same reports can only be interpreted as an attempt to impose a specific political frame. Going forward, we will not only formally request corrections to unfounded and distorted reports, but we will also actively consider legal action if necessary."
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