Gyeonggi Province Selects Paju, Yeoncheon, Yangpyeong, and Gapyeong as First Sites for 'Daily Life SOC Return Project'

[Suwon Ilbo=Reporter Kim Gapdong] Gyeonggi Province has selected four cities and counties—Paju City, Yeoncheon County, Yangpyeong County, and Gapyeong County—as the first target sites for the 'Gyeonggi Daily Life SOC Return Project,' which returns profits generated from public development projects to residents, and is now providing support.

On the 18th, the province held a 'First Gyeonggi Daily Life SOC Return Project Target Site Announcement Ceremony' at Seongpyeong Gender Equality Paju Exhibition and Education Center, attended by approximately 150 people including mayors, county chiefs, provincial legislators, and local residents, finalizing support for the four cities and counties.

Governor Kim Dong-yeon said, "Gyeonggi Province has numerous public development projects, and I thought about how best to use the development profits generated from them," and explained the background of the Gyeonggi Daily Life SOC Return Project, stating, "For the first time in Korea, we have decided to use a portion of development profits generated from specific regions for regional balanced development."

Governor Kim added, "I give my hearty congratulations to the four cities and counties that were selected despite the difficult 6-to-1 competition rate," and said, "This is the first phase, and we will also proceed with a second phase. We will accumulate the profits from public development projects carried out in Gyeonggi Province and provide additional support to regions that are facing difficulties and need special consideration."

Governor Kim stated, "I thank you for your strong support and interest in Gyeonggi Province's initiative for regional balanced development, where we work as one family for the development of other regions," and added, "Just as this model, which is Korea's first, Gyeonggi Province will continue to establish new standards for Korea."

The 'Gyeonggi Daily Life SOC Return Project' is an initiative that supports the expansion of daily life SOC—including sports, culture, welfare, and transportation—closely related to residents' daily lives by utilizing a resident return fund created through revenue recovery from development profits generated by public development projects.

The province has created a resident return fund totaling 150.5 billion won from 2021 to 2025 and is utilizing it to expand living infrastructure. In particular, this project is significant in that it focuses on regions that have been constrained in development due to overlapping regulations such as water source protection zones, military facility protection zones, special action zones, and waterfront areas, as well as poor financial conditions.

The four selected cities and counties will receive a total of 64 billion won in provincial funding—160 billion won each—over four years, including design and construction costs. The province plans to provide 1 billion won to each city and county this year to advance the initial stages of the project, including design and supervision. Projects will be promoted through a daily life SOC complex facility development method that reflects regional characteristics and needs.

The 'Retreat Station' project in the Yeonpung-ri area of Paju City will transform a former sex trade district into an open space for healing and communication for community exchange. The project will construct a facility spanning basement 1 to 3 floors on a 10,462-square-meter site and plans to operate multicultural cooking classes, parenting education programs, and shared offices.

The 'Growing Together Complex Center' project in the Jeongok-ri area of Yeoncheon County will establish a basement 1 to 4-story facility on a 1,828-square-meter site to create an integrated hub for education, welfare, and culture that can be used by both people with and without disabilities and all generations, while promoting community activation.

The 'Yangpyeong Western Harmony Center' project in the Yongdam-ri area of Yangpyeong County will construct an intergenerational daily life SOC facility on a 2,452-square-meter site spanning 1 to 4 floors above ground, combining elderly welfare centers, public indoor park golf courses, and shared child care centers. The project aims to alleviate family care burdens and create a healthy growth environment.

The 'Modu-Ieum-Teo' (Everyone's Connection) project in the Yeonha-ri area of Gapyeong County will establish a basement 1 to 4-story multipurpose community space on an 8,581-square-meter site combining educational, cultural, and sports functions including a multipurpose gymnasium, study café, and toy library, while promoting intergenerational exchange and improving residents' quality of life.

Meanwhile, a total of 23 cities and counties participated in this public offering, and the province selected the final support targets through an audition-style evaluation process reflecting public opinion survey results and evaluation presentations from cities and counties.