Gwacheon City Opposes Government's 'Additional Housing Supply Site Designation' Initiative

[Suwon Ilbo=Reporter Yu Je-sung] Gwacheon City announced on the 23rd that it clearly opposes recent movements regarding the government's housing supply measures, with Gwacheon City being mentioned as a potential additional housing supply site.

This comes following the announcement of the government's housing supply measures, which was foreshadowed during the President's New Year press conference on January 21, and subsequent reports mentioning the possibility of designating new housing supply sites within Gwacheon City.

The city previously experienced significant civic opposition and community conflict in 2020 when the government announced a housing supply plan for the unused Gwacheon Government Complex site. Following consultations with the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, the plan was adjusted to provide approximately 3,000 units in the Gwacheon-Gwacheon District and approximately 1,000 units in the Gwacheon-Galhyeon District, after which the plan was withdrawn.

Currently, the city is simultaneously developing four public housing districts: Gwacheon Knowledge Information Town, Gwacheon-Gwacheon District, Gwacheon-Juam District, and Gwacheon-Galhyeon District. As a result, the capacity of urban infrastructure including roads, transportation, water and sewerage, and educational facilities has already reached its limits.

Considering these conditions, the city assesses that designating additional housing supply sites could place significant burdens on urban sustainability and residents' living conditions.

Meanwhile, the city plans to maintain communication with citizens while preserving the city's identity and living environment, and will maintain a clear position of opposition to additional housing supply policies that do not suit Gwacheon's conditions.

Mayor Shin Gye-yong stated, "Gwacheon City is currently experiencing development that exceeds the urban infrastructure capacity," and emphasized, "We clearly oppose the designation of additional housing supply sites within Gwacheon City, in accord with our citizens' views." He added, "While we sympathize with the intent of the government's housing supply policy, a cautious approach that sufficiently considers local conditions is necessary."