Special Report Yangpyeong County Systematically Reorganizes Eastern Region Tourism Resources

[Suwon Ilbo=Reporter Eom In-yong] Yangpyeong County is embarking on focused investments to develop new tourism content and reorganize resources to enhance competitiveness and sustainability in the eastern region.

Centered on the Yongmun Mountain Tourist Site, Jipyeong International Peace Park, and Gudun Art Station, the county plans to increase local revisit rates to stabilize the regional economy and achieve revitalization of the old downtown.

Ahead of the Yangpyeong Yongmun Mountain Wild Vegetable Festival, the county completed the Yongmun Mountain Tourist Site development project. The Yongmun Mountain Tourist Site is Yangpyeong's largest integrated tourism complex, bringing together Yongmun Mountain, Yongmun Temple, and the Yongmun Temple Ginkgo Tree, a natural monument. About 1.2 million visitors come annually, and the Yongmun Mountain Wild Vegetable Festival, one of Yangpyeong's largest festivals, is held here each year.

Last year, the county invested 1 billion won (100% special adjustment funds) to implement a pedestrian-vehicle separation project on Yongmun Mountain. The project installed a 650-meter walking path from Yongmun Mountain's main gate to the sales facility, separating vehicle and pedestrian traffic so that tourists can climb Yongmun Mountain more safely and conveniently. The path was created using eco-friendly materials such as earthen concrete, decking, and wooden bridges.

Additionally, for continued development and maintenance of the Yongmun Mountain Tourist Site, the county repaved parking lots and repaired deteriorating facilities including bell fountains, rest areas, and sculptures to provide a pleasant tourism environment.

Additionally, the county is promoting the creation of the 'Yangpyeong International Peace Park' to re-examine the historical significance of the Battle of Jipyeong-ri in the Jipyeong area. Jipyeong-myeon was the site of the Battle of Jipyeong-ri in 1951, where UN forces defeated and repelled Chinese communist forces more than five times their size. The Jipyeong Distillery remains as a building that survived during the war.

The county plans to invest approximately 40 billion won on a site of about 66,000 square meters at a relocated former military base near Jipyeong Station to build a historical memorial park that maximizes on-site authenticity through research and verification of the Battle of Jipyeong-ri.

Inside, starting with the Yangpyeong Museum equipped with four exhibition halls, storage facilities, experience rooms, memorial halls, and education rooms, the county plans to create a sculpture park, outdoor performance venue, artist residency studios and creative spaces for participating nations, memorial sculptures, military experience facilities utilizing renovated military-related buildings, resident convenience facilities, and community spaces. The project aims to strengthen Korea-France friendship and promote international cultural exchanges.

The park targets opening in 2029, and to facilitate smooth progress, County Governor Jeon Jin-seon visited the French city of Chauny in early this month to sign a friendly exchange agreement between the two cities and agreed to cooperate on creating a space for independence activist Hong Jae-ha and historical research within the park. Chauny is the city where Hong Jae-ha, an independence activist from Yangpyeong County, first settled in France around the time of World War I, and the mayor of Chauny visited the county last year to pay respects at the UN France memorial for those killed at the Jipyeong-ri site.

The county is also accelerating the 'Gudun Art Station' project under construction in the Jipyeong area.

Gudun Station, designated as Registered Cultural Property No. 296 of Korea, is famous as a filming location for the film 'A Moment to Remember' and the cover of IU's 'Palette' album. Centered on this area, the county plans to invest 18.7 billion won to develop approximately 66,000 square meters into a tourism resource.

Inside the platform, a film and music workshop, sales facilities, cultural arts center, rest facilities, Baekwhasu Forest Gallery, Eunha Camp Plaza, and a flea market are planned, and the county expects them to attract many tourists.

County Governor Jeon Jin-seon said, "We will systematically reorganize and connect the tourism resources of the eastern region to create attractive spaces," and added, "Tourism activation directly leads to regional economic activation, and we will make every effort to make Yangpyeong a representative tourism city of the nation."