Oh Se-hoon: "We will invest 270 billion won to build a K-Entertown... Chang-dong will become a mecca for K-pop"

\r\n
\r\n[Financial News] The Chang-dong area in Dobong District, Seoul, will be reborn as a "K-Entertown." In addition to global stages at the "Seoul Arena," which will seat about 28,000 people, the surrounding museums and streets will also be turned into spaces where people can continuously hear K-pop. The city also plans to create jobs through commercial facilities specialized in K-culture and develop tour courses for visitors and tourists.
\r\nSeoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon announced the plan for "Global Cultural Hub, K-Entertown Chang-dong" on the 21st. The goal is to revitalize the local economy by attracting tourists and to make Chang-dong a key economic hub in the northeastern part of the city by fostering the entertainment industry and creating jobs.
First, the city will build a "Live Stage" district centered on Seoul Arena, where global performances and exhibitions will continue throughout the year. More than 100 performances a year, drawing 30,000 visitors, will be held at Seoul Arena, while street performances and busking will be held regularly at Chang-dong Station Plaza and under the elevated road.
\r\nIn particular, performances at Seoul Arena will be equipped with a live broadcast system called "Connective Live" so they can be shared in real time from outside the venue. The service will transmit live performances from Seoul Arena to various regional hubs.
\r\nAwards ceremonies, album launch events, fan meetings and other events will also be held at the complex cultural convention center to be built inside Seoul Arena.
The K-Entertown project will be expanded across the entire northeastern area by linking it with cultural landmarks in northern Seoul, such as DDP and Dongdaemun K-POP Street. At the time of opening, the city also plans to draw visitors by working with Seoul's signature seasonal festival, the Seoul Spring Festival.
\r\nVarious exhibitions and hands-on programs will be operated year-round at nearby venues, including the Seoul Museum of Photography, RAIM, and the cultural and arts space under the elevated section near Chang-dong Station.
Through the "Live Industry" concept, the city also aims to create new jobs that will help energize the local economy. It plans to establish commercial facilities specialized in K-culture to encourage visitors to spend more money in the area.
Tourists who come to Chang-dong for K-pop performances will be able to enjoy shopping for goods, K-fashion and K-beauty at the Chang-dong Private Station Complex. A K-food specialty market will also be created on the site of Nonghyup Hanaro Mart.
In particular, the city will apply bold incentives, including a floor area ratio of up to 1,300%, to underused sites and aging commercial districts near Chang-dong Station. This will create a foundation for commercial, tourism, lodging and corporate office facilities. The city will also continue to attract and intensively nurture culture and entertainment companies.
\r\nPublic music support facilities inside Seoul Arena will be directly operated by the public sector. The city will support music content production and distribution for high-potential companies such as small and mid-sized agencies, and it will also provide startup space at Changdong Aurne, a startup complex, and Seed Cube Changdong, a cultural industry complex.
The city is also considering introducing office facilities and tourist lodging at Changdong Station Complex Transit Center to attract key culture-related companies.
Culture industry companies will also be attracted to S-DBC in Sanggye, across the Jungnangcheon from Seoul Arena. In addition to the bio industry, the city will allow performance and entertainment companies to move in, accelerating the restructuring of northern Seoul through closer links between Chang-dong and Sanggye.
By expanding infrastructure that allows tourists to stay longer in the K-Entertown area, the city aims to realize a "Live City." It will develop sites such as Changdong Station Complex Transit Center, NH Mixed-Use Commercial Facility, and the support facility land in S-DBC, while adding 700 lodging rooms.
The city explained, "Among actual K-pop concert audiences, foreigners account for 30% to 40%, and more than 90% of visitors engage in stay-related activities, so attendance is already leading to longer stays." It added, "We will fill the gap in tourism infrastructure in the northeastern area and help raise local residents' incomes by revitalizing urban homestays using nearby housing."
The city will develop various tour routes, including a "cultural and arts themed street" connecting Chang-dong Station, Seoul Arena and Jungnangcheon, and it will create a K-pop Plaza in front of Changdong Station Complex Transit Center to enhance the city's image.
"K-Entertown Chang-dong" is aiming to be designated in 2027 as the "Chang-dong Cultural and Tourism Special Development Promotion District." The city plans to attract private investment by offering various incentives, including financing, tax benefits and eased floor area ratios, and will invest a total of 270 billion won.
Oh said, "The Chang-dong and Sanggye area will no longer be a peripheral district, but a cultural and artistic hub in Seoul's northeastern region and a core economic engine that will help lead the city's future as it opens the era of 30 million foreign tourists." He added, "We will deliver strong support and realize a new era of prosperity for northern Seoul until Gangbuk's potential becomes competitiveness and the possibility of change leads to real progress in closing the gap."
\r\n
chlee1@fnnews.com Lee Chang-hoon Reporter