Lee administration’s new plan for Sejong City creating a black hole for regional projects

Posted on : 2010-01-08 12:41 KST Modified on : 2019-10-19 20:29 KST
Governors and mayors have begun to speak out on the negative effects of erasing balanced regional development from the Sejong City Development Plan
 governor of North Gyeongsang Province
governor of North Gyeongsang Province

Protest surrounds the Lee administration as its intentions to modify the original plan to develop a new administrative center in Sejong City have begun to reveal themselves. Surrounding local governments continue to push their own plans to develop corporate or innovation cities and host national industry complexes and free economic zones have begun to voice their criticism as the Lee administration announces a shocking array of benefits to corporations as incentives to relocate to the new Sejong City. The Lee administration announced its plans on Jan. 5 to support corporations with their relocation to Sejong City with land priced at 360,000 Won to 400,000 Won per 3.3 square meters, in addition to tax and financial benefits equal to those offered by other cities.

On Thursday, Daegu Mayor Kim Bum-il and Governor Kim Kwan-yong of Gyeongsangbuk Region held press conferences at Daegu City Hall and Gyeongsangbuk Provincial Hall, respectively. Both pressed the Lee administration to give regional industrial complexes the same kind of support being given to Sejong City, and expressed concern that the modified Sejong City Development Plan could cause problems for other regional projects. The mood in Gyeongsangbuk Region is one of pressure as news broke that Samsung’s biosimilar production complex that has been imagined as part of its push in this new investment sector will not be coming to Daegu and may be established in Sejong City instead.

Gwangju Region and Jeollanam Regions have been pushing plans to build Innovation Cities, a Muan-Yeongnam Corporate City and a Gwangyang Bay Area Free Economic Zone, and are now worried that these projects may run into serious trouble. In particular, luring corporate investment with the regions’ key draw, competitive land prices, may now prove difficult with Sejong City as a contender. Gwangju Mayor Park Gwang-tae says that if the new renewable energy and solar power industries, which are being cultivated in Gwangju, and all the national research institutes, which the city was trying to draw to a special R&D zone, were to go to Sejong City, Gwangju’s plans would go up in smoke. Mayor Park calls on the Lee administration to hold talks with city and provincial governments throughout the country to provide the same level of assistance to them as it intends to provide to Sejong City.

The Jeollabuk Region plans to draw investors to its Saemangeum-Gunsan Free Economic Zone and industrial zones may run into some difficulties and the region’s officials appear as concerned as the others over recent changes in the Sejong City Development Plan. Lee Chun-hee, head of the Saemangeum-Gunsan Project, said at a press conference Wednesday that if all other conditions are equal, Saemangeum would have to offer land at cheaper prices than Sejong City. Lee said this essentially would mean the government would have to lower its current selling price or give the free economic zone land or the industrial zone land away for free.

Incheon, which is considered to have a competitive edge over other regions, is also expressing concern over the Lee administration’s new plans for Sejong City. One official at the Incheon Free Economic Zone (IFEZ) says a lot of work has gone into drawing global universities, foreign investors and cutting-edge industries to the Songdo Free Economic Zone over the years, but this could all come to naught due to the Sejong City Development Plan revisions. The official believes the three Incheon free economic zones of Songdo, Yeongjong and Cheongna could take a major hit.

Regarding this matter, Jo Myeong-nae, professor of Dankook University, says the Lee administration’s attempt to nullify the plan’s original intention to build a second administrative center and replace it with incentives in an attempt to draw companies and research institutes to Sejong City is causing redundancies with other regional projects. Professor Jo says that if the goal of balanced regional development and reducing overcrowding in the capital area are erased, there is great concern that Sejong City will instead become a black hole for companies and create regional imbalances.

Please direct questions or comments to [englishhani@hani.co.kr]

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