Kim Hyosook, Sejong City Council Member, Urges Legislative Improvements for Vacant Commercial Spaces and Balanced Development at National Assembly

Attendance at National Assembly-Local Council Roundtable Presided Over by Speaker Woo Wonsik
"Transforming Vacant Commercial Spaces into Innovation Hubs: Cooperation Between Central and Local Governments as the Starting Point"

At the roundtable held in the National Assembly main building, Sejong City Councilor Kim Hyosook is explaining the current issues of vacant commercial spaces in the Sejong area to National Assembly Speaker Woo Wonsik. Photo by Kim Hyosook

At the National Assembly-Local Council Roundtable held on the 24th in the Main Building of the National Assembly, presided over by Speaker Woo Wonsik, Kim Hyosook, a member of the Sejong City Council, attended to discuss key issues such as responding to local extinction, resolving vacant commercial spaces, and achieving balanced national development.

At the meeting, Assemblywoman Kim stated, "The issue of vacant commercial spaces is not a challenge unique to specific regions, but a common task faced by local governments nationwide. It is a core factor that accelerates population decline and economic stagnation in the regions." She added, "In the case of Sejong City, the vacancy rate for medium and large commercial spaces in the first quarter of 2025 is 25.2%, which is twice the national average," explaining the current situation.

She continued, "Vacant commercial spaces are not merely a spatial problem; they lead to job losses, the outflow of young people, and shrinking consumption, which in turn trap the local economy in a vicious cycle." She urged, "The National Assembly should control excessive supply and institutionalize the use of vacant commercial spaces through legislative and regulatory improvements, so that innovative strategies such as youth entrepreneurship, combining housing and business, and fostering the AI content industry can be implemented."

In particular, she highlighted the problems of vacant commercial spaces in Sejong City and called for the National Assembly's continued attention to this crisis by making the issue a key agenda item during budget reviews and audits, and by urging the relevant departments to establish responsible countermeasures.

She emphasized, "There needs to be an effective tax incentive system for landlords and a structure in which local councils can support policies on the ground through ordinances." She added, "I hope that the National Assembly and local councils will together open the way for young people to start businesses in their hometowns without having to leave, create regionally specialized industries, and transform vacant commercial spaces into hubs of innovation."

Previously, the research group seeking multifaceted solutions to commercial vacancy, in which Assemblywoman Kim serves as the lead member, has discussed various policy alternatives through four roundtable meetings. The group plans to complete its research next month and present a model for utilizing vacant commercial spaces tailored to local conditions.