Gwangmyeong Secures K-Arena - Unlimited K-Culture Potential with KTX and Phase 3 New City

Gwangmyeong City (Mayor Park Seung-won) is strengthening its cooperation framework with the National Assembly member's office and Gyeonggi Province Council to attract a 'sports and performance complex dome stadium (K-Arena)'.

On the 30th, the city held a 'working-level coordination meeting to attract a sports and performance complex dome stadium to Gwangmyeong' at the local office of National Assembly member Lim O-gyeong (Gwangmyeong A), and discussed cooperation and support measures among relevant agencies in preparation for the dome stadium construction recruitment project promoted by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism.

The meeting was attended by Gyeonggi Province councilor Shim Sang-rok, Gyeonggi Province councilor Choi Min, Senior Secretary Kim Yeon-jin from National Assembly member Lim O-gyeong's office, and Gwangmyeong City Culture and Tourism Division Chief Park Jin-suk, and discussed ▲expansion of interest and support at the Gyeonggi Province Council level ▲policy coordination among the National Assembly member's office, Gyeonggi Province Council, and Gwangmyeong City ▲response strategies for central government recruitment ▲roles and cooperation matters of respective organizations.

In particular, attendees shared opinions on ways to link the city's K-Arena with future urban development resources, noting that Gwangmyeong City is equipped with wide-area transportation infrastructure including the Gwangmyeong Station on the high-speed rail (KTX) and future urban development resources such as the Gwangmyeong-Siheung Phase 3 New City and Gwangmyeong-Siheung Techno Valley.

Gwangmyeong City plans to develop the K-Arena not as a simple large-scale sports facility, but as a complex cultural space combining various industries and contents including K-Culture performances, sports, entertainment tech, and information and communication technology (ICT).

Gwangmyeong Mayor Park Seung-won said, "The K-Arena will serve as a new growth foundation for Korea's culture industry, beyond enhancing Gwangmyeong City's cultural and sports competitiveness. We will work closely with the National Assembly member's office and Gyeonggi Province Council to systematically respond to central government recruitment and establish a foundation for project implementation."

Gwangmyeong City established a 'K-Arena Attraction Policy Task Force (TF)' in July last year and completed the establishment of a basic strategy for attracting the K-Arena. Currently, the city is conducting a 'Gwangmyeong K-Arena Attraction Feasibility Study and Basic Plan Establishment Project' while receiving consulting from experts in related fields such as culture and contents, performance halls, and sports.

Going forward, the city plans to densely concretize a K-Culture (culture) complex industry strategy encompassing sports, performances, information and communication technology (ICT), tourism, and shopping to attract the K-Arena, establish a close cooperation system with Gyeonggi Province, and make an all-out effort to attract the national recruitment project.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism plans to announce the results of large-scale (50,000 seats) and mid-size (30,000 seats) site selection by the end of December this year, following the nationwide recruitment procedure starting in October and business proposal submission and evaluation in December.