Gyeongbuk Office of Education to Build Nine Public Libraries with 26.1 Billion Won... Yecheon and Yeongyang Libraries to Open Next Month

The Gyeongbuk Office of Education (Superintendent Lim Jong-sik) announced on February 24 that it will invest a budget of 26.1 billion won this year to fully push ahead with the construction of nine public libraries in the province, in order to promote balanced regional development and build up the infrastructure for reading education.

Yeongyang Library and Yecheon Library are currently in normal operation, and opening ceremonies are scheduled for March 11 (Yeongyang Library) and March 25 (Yecheon Library), respectively. Yeongyang Library, created as a sunlit eco-friendly space, and Yecheon Library, harmonizing with Hancheon Stream in front of the library, are expected to establish themselves as leading local cultural landmarks where lifelong reading, education, and cultural activities come together.

Yecheon Library set to open next month

The libraries currently under construction are also gathering pace. Yeongcheon Library, which is being developed as a waterfront library embracing Uroji Ecological Park, and Chilgok Library, which will replace a 64-year-old outdated library with a new building, both broke ground in January this year, with construction underway toward an opening in the second half of 2027.

In addition, Pohang Library, which is being developed as an "urban forest library" in connection with Hwanho Park, will complete its design work at the end of February and move on to the construction bidding process, with opening scheduled for September 2028. Gumi Library, which will be relocated to the Wonpyeong-dong area at the foot of Geumosan Mountain, is scheduled to open in April 2029.

Furthermore, Gimcheon Library, to be built in Gimcheon where there is currently no library under the Office of Education, and Bonghwa Library, the only public library in the Bonghwa area, are now undergoing a preliminary feasibility assessment for public library construction by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism. After subsequent procedures, both are slated to open in 2029.

At the same time, a relocation site is being reviewed for the construction of Gyeongsan Library, and plans are underway to build public libraries in connection with school-facility complex projects for Uljin Library and Ulleung Library.

The Gyeongbuk Office of Education plans to continue expanding public libraries that reflect regional characteristics and demand, thereby building an ecosystem of reading and learning culture centered on libraries.

Lim Jong-sik, Superintendent of the Gyeongbuk Office of Education, said, "As can be seen from the case of Yeongdeok Library, which presented a new paradigm for public library construction, public libraries are key infrastructure that improve residential conditions in local communities and transform the educational environment," adding, "By promoting public library construction at the highest level among provincial and metropolitan offices of education nationwide, we will make libraries into learning spaces where students can nurture their dreams, and into cultural spaces where residents can enjoy a richer quality of life."