Persuading Opposition to Suwon Metropolitan City Elevation is Key

Analysis has emerged indicating that establishing relationships with Gyeonggi Province and neighboring municipalities, as well as persuading those opposed to the elevation, are key challenges for achieving Suwon's elevation to metropolitan city status.

On the 21st, the second regular meeting and workshop of the Suwon City Policy Advisory Committee were held in the conference room of the annex building of Suwon City Hall.

At the policy advisory committee workshop, current issues and development strategies for the Suwon region were discussed through six topic presentations organized by field, including general administration, finance and economy, and culture and tourism.

Professor Hong Bong-gyu from Kyonggi University (general administration field) presented on the theme of "Recommendations for Suwon's Elevation to Metropolitan City Status," noting that "Suwon is the capital city of Gyeonggi Province and, despite being the largest municipal-level city nationwide with a population exceeding 1.07 million, it faces constraints on autonomy that are becoming an obstacle to long-term development."

Professor Hong indicated that Suwon's population and other factors are similar to those of Ulsan Metropolitan City (population 1.1 million), and raised equity concerns when compared to cases where Gwangju, Daejeon, and Ulsan were elevated to metropolitan city status by absorbing neighboring municipalities.

As practical measures for metropolitan city elevation, Professor Hong proposed the composition of a Metropolitan City Promotion Committee (or Special Committee) led by the city and city council, or centered on civic organizations.

He also cited methods such as continuously requesting the political sphere to achieve metropolitan city elevation as a new government takes office, and promoting a citywide metropolitan city elevation movement.

Professor Hong emphasized that "a diverse and systematic roadmap for metropolitan city elevation must be created," stressing the need to address various delicate conflicts of interest, including relationship-building with Gyeonggi Province, relations with neighboring municipalities opposed to Suwon's metropolitan status, and persuasion of opponents to metropolitan city elevation.

However, the process toward metropolitan city elevation could face obstacles including government and Gyeonggi Province's discussions on local administrative system restructuring, Suwon's small area (121.1 ㎢, compared to an average of 791 ㎢ for six metropolitan cities), the capital region congestion containment policy, and opposition from Gyeonggi Province and nearby Seongnam (960,000), Goyang (910,000), and Yongin (800,000) cities.

To address these issues, Professor Hong indicated that actively reviewing integration with nearby cities (Hwaseong and Osan), persuading municipalities expected to request elevation such as Seongnam and Yongin, and minimizing Gyeonggi Province's opposition are tasks ahead.

Professor Hong stated that "if Suwon City files a constitutional petition with the Constitutional Court regarding metropolitan city elevation, it could invite another constitutional petition from neighboring municipalities," and suggested "acquiring land owned by Yongin City in the Suwon area and absorbing part of the Yongin region" as an alternative.

He noted that Suwon's failure to achieve metropolitan city status despite meeting the requirements raises concerns about violation of equal rights, and indicated there is potential for success if citizens or civic organizations file a constitutional petition.

Meanwhile, at the workshop, presentations continued including Byeon Myeong-shik committee member's "Activating the Car-Free Street at Paldalmun Market (Finance and Economy)," Policy Advisory Committee Chair Kim I-hwan's "Methods to Activate Museum Operations (Culture and Tourism)," and Professor Bae Ki-soo from Ajou University College of Medicine's "Building a Human Abuse Prevention System (Social Welfare)."

Additionally, Professor Oh Young-dae from Ajou University's "Direction of Suwon City's Transportation Policy (Urban Construction)" and Committee Member Jeon Ki-hong's "South Korea's Health Insurance and Chronic Disease Management (Environment and Greenery)" were also presented.