From a playground for children to parenting support: Incheon’s largest ‘Ai Sarang Dream Center’ to open

【Financial News, Incheon = Han Gab-soo, reporter】 A major childcare support facility in Incheon, bringing together spaces where children can play to their hearts’ content and parenting consultations and developmental support services for parents, will open in the first half of next year. More than just a play facility, it is a multipurpose center that will also support young children with developmental issues and parents facing the demands of raising children.
Incheon City announced on the 10th that the Ai Sarang Dream Center, built in Bupyeong-dong, Bupyeong District, was completed last September and is scheduled to open in the first half of next year.
Construction of the center began in 2023, with a total project cost of 37.6 billion won. It was built as two buildings, with two basement floors and four above-ground floors, on a 14,673-square-meter site, with a total floor area of 9,585 square meters.
The facility is divided into Building A, a play and activity space for children, and Building B, which provides specialized childcare support services. Building A includes a water-play area, a children’s library, an exhibition and activity hall, and a book-play area. The space is planned to be operated so that children with disabilities or developmental difficulties can also enjoy playing alongside their peers.
The Incheon City Comprehensive Childcare Support Center and the Infant and Toddler Development Support Center will be housed in Building B. They will provide play therapy, parent counseling, and training for childcare staff, addressing both support tailored to children’s developmental characteristics and parents’ concerns about raising their children.
One notable feature is that play activities, developmental support, and counseling will all be available in one place. The city also expects the nearby The Catholic University of Korea Incheon St. Mary’s Hospital to help establish a support system for infants and young children linked to medical services.
The city has completed a contract for outsourced operation of the facility. Before its official opening, it plans to arrange the handover of the facility, conduct trial runs, and purchase operating supplies.
Kim Gyeong-seon, director of the city’s Women and Family Bureau, said, “We expect the Ai Sarang Dream Center to be a fun playground for children and a place where parents can share their concerns about raising children.”
[email protected] Han Gab-soo Reporter