Yongin Citizens' Farm in Gihung-gu's Gongse-dong to Expand to Triple Its Current Size

[Suwon Ilbo=Reporter Park No-hun] The 'Yongin Citizens' Farm' will expand to triple its current size.

Yongin Special City announced on the 6th that it will significantly expand the Yongin Citizens' Farm located in Gongse-dong, Gihung-gu from the existing 8,389㎡ (2,537 pyeong) to 40,000㎡ (12,100 pyeong).

The city decided to expand the Gongse-dong Citizens' Farm in response to increasing citizen demand for urban agriculture enjoyed in the city such as rooftop gardens, balcony gardens, and vegetable patches, as well as the competition rate for citizen farm plots steadily rising from 6:1 in 2020 to 9:1 last year and 11:1 this year.

The city will begin construction to expand the Gongse-dong Citizens' Farm to triple its size starting in January next year.

The city plans to utilize land surrounding Gihung Lake adjacent to the Gongse-dong Citizens' Farm and will establish convenience facilities for citizens to rest comfortably as well as experience and educational spaces.

The city has already completed basic consultations with the Korea Rural Community Corporation, which owns the land.

The Gongse-dong Citizens' Farm, which began operations in January, had long suffered from illegal cultivation and illegal dumping of waste.

There were also numerous complaints from residents in neighboring areas.

In response, the city consulted with the Korea Rural Community Corporation to resolve issues of illegal cultivation and illegal dumping, and established the citizens' farm to support citizens' leisure activities.

The site that had caused eyebrows to furrow due to garbage has transformed into a space where citizens obtain safe food and learn the value of nature.

As it is connected to the Gihung Lake Park's walking trail, citizen satisfaction is quite high.

A citizens' farm is also operated in Mapyeong-dong, Cheoin-gu with a size of 7,195㎡ (2,176 pyeong). At the citizens' farms, vegetable patches where citizens can grow and harvest food themselves are leased to individuals (12㎡ per plot), households of the disabled, multicultural families, and large families (12㎡ per plot), and groups (36㎡ per plot).

Various educational programs for citizens including the Urban Farmer School, Children's Farmer School, eco-friendly crop cultivation, and agricultural pest management are also operated and receiving great response.

Currently, the two citizens' farms have a total of 400 plots leased, consisting of 300 individual plots, 40 plots for the disabled, multicultural families, and large families, and 60 group plots, with many citizens making active use of them.

In relation to this, Mayor Lee Sang-il visited the site on the 4th with department staff members and carefully reviewed the planned expansion area, confirming that there are no issues in project implementation.

The mayor said, "Please maintain close consultation with the Korea Rural Community Corporation, the landowner, so that the project can proceed in a timely manner," and requested that "attention be paid so that no inconvenience to citizens occurs during construction."

The mayor encouraged employees working at the citizens' farm and requested, "As families of citizens are using this facility extensively, please pay special attention to safety."