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| The Dobong Miracle Library, the first children's library in Seoul / Courtesy of Dobong District Office |
By Ko Dong-hwan
Residents of Seoul's northernmost district of Dobong are looking to change the dormitory town's image by setting up business initiatives.
The district currently has an employment-population ratio of 17.1 percent, less than half of the city's average of 43.9 percent. Thus, residents are excited about the new initiatives that will turn the district around, according to the district head Lee Dong-jin.
The biggest of the related projects is the construction of a mega cultural performance arena in Chang-dong in the district. The 20,000-seat arena, which is scheduled for groundbreaking in 2017 and completion three years later, will be the biggest of its kind nationwide. With costs estimated to reach 470 billion won ($396 million), the district will receive bids for the project until February.
The district is looking to attract tourists with performances by "hallyu" stars in the arena, as well as shopping malls and hotels nearby, creating a culture-industry belt that will boost the district's economy, according to Lee.
"The arena project began in 2012 when the city and four northeastern districts (Nowon, Gangbuk, Seongbuk and Dobong) started discussing how to develop the districts as a whole," Lee said. "I led the discussion for the first two years. "Following efforts, in January 2014, Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon announced the ‘Happy Four Districts Plan' to turn the regions of Chang-dong and Sanggye-dong in Nowon-gu into the nation's new economic hub with the arena."
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| Dobong-gu mayor Lee Dong-jin |
In July 2014, staffers from the four districts formed a team under the Seoul Metropolitan Government's Urban Regeneration Headquarters to push the arena project forward, while Dobong-gu set up a task force to support and monitor the project in January of this year. Mayor Park also reaffirmed the project after his visit to the Saitama Super Arena in Saitama Prefecture, Japan in February.
The district also began building a uniquely designed exhibition pavilion called the Dream Box in June. Scheduled for completion in November, the 2,790-square-meter pavilion will support business startups and promote the arena-centered economic breakthrough.
The pavilion will consist of 51 empty shipping container boxes and will be set up right above the existing public parking lots near Changdong Subway Station. The pavilion will be run temporarily until 2019 when the construction for a bullet train transfer center will begin at the site. The transfer center will also contribute to the district's goal of becoming an economic hub in Seoul.
"Dream Box will serve as a show house of the future of Dobong-gu," Lee said. "When the plans are executed, the district will generate about 5,600 new jobs and expand the district's industrial zone, which now takes up only 1.3 percent of the district geographically."
Beginning his political career in 1998 as a Seoul Metropolitan Council member and taking office as the district's mayor in 2011, Lee has been focused on improving the welfare for underprivileged residents.
Forming a welfare committee with 240 residents, the district designated 99 service locations, ranging from religious communities to companies and schools, and operates more than 30 welfare-related businesses, including porridge delivery and holding birthday parties for senior citizens who live alone and running after-school lessons for community residents.
On July 30, the district also opened the Dobong Miracle Library, the first children's library in Seoul and one of 12 in the nation. The library is equipped with children-friendly interior design and furniture, and was built with heat-inductive marble tiles on all floors so children can lie down on the floors and read any of the 20,000 books on the shelves comfortably.
"There is an adage that it takes a village to raise a child," Lee said. "I think it takes an entire nation, not just a village."
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