Youngtong 1-dong: An Apartment Where a Stream Flows

The Residents' Representation Council of Shinmyung Korea Apartment (chairman Song Jae-il) in Youngtong 1-dong, Youngtong-gu, was selected as the final winner in September for the "2011 Suwon Village Renaissance Contest" with a distinctive project titled "Ssumji Park Creation Using Groundwater."

Following this, the apartment complex is accelerating efforts to create an "ecological park with flowing stream water," targeting completion by the end of this month.

The project was initiated after the Residents' Representation Council of Shinmyung Korea Apartment sought ways to utilize the large amount of groundwater that had been welling up from the underground parking lot foundation within the complex and being wasted. The council gathered residents' opinions that led to the decision to create an ecological park.

Shinmyung Korea Apartment will draw up the natural resource of groundwater to create a wildflower ecological park where streams flow year-round and wildflowers bloom. The apartment complex expects this to serve as a reading space where residents can build spiritual enrichment while listening to the sound of stream water, as well as a communication space for fostering neighborly ties among residents.

Lee Nan-ho, head of Youngtong 1-dong, said, "When warm spring comes after winter, I hope the ecological park with the sound of flowing stream water will become a refuge and gathering place where children can play in the water and residents can gather together and chat comfortably, serving as a communal heart of the neighborhood."