Over three years, 61 billion KRW will be invested in promoting eight key projects, as part of a traffic signal reduction agreement with the Busan Police Agency.
(Busan = Yonhap News) Reporter Jo Jeong-ho – To enhance the level of public design, Busan City is expanding its “emptying the city” pilot projects and installing creative public facilities on the streets.
On the 19th, Busan City announced its “Big Design Project” plan in the main conference room at City Hall. Attendees included Mayor Park Heong-joon, Busan Police Chief Kim Su-hwan, and design experts. This plan, themed “Busan: A City of Elegant Design,” involves investing 61 billion KRW over the next three years to pursue eight major tasks by 2026.
The “Citizen Happiness Busan Meeting” is a platform where Mayor Park receives direct feedback from citizens and incorporates it into policies, aiming to drive citizen-experienced policies under the eighth elected term in its latter half. This was the fourth meeting.
The city plans to expand its “emptying the city” projects, currently underway near Busan Station, to a total of six locations by 2026. With a 9 billion KRW budget, the initiative will enhance the city’s aesthetic by modifying street spaces, multicomplex areas, tourist spots, and residential zones.
For urban areas, it will remove public facilities and structures that don’t blend with the environment, freeing up spaces throughout the city.
To elevate the streets’ elegance, 29.1 billion KRW will be allocated to install creative public facilities, selected through international design competitions, in key entry points and tourist attractions.
Through the “Global Night Tourism Landmark Project,” with an investment of 15.3 billion KRW, Busan will become a “City of Light,” harmonizing light and darkness. It will highlight Nakdong River banks, Songdo, Busan Harbor Bridge, SpoOne, and Youngnak Park with unique lighting designs and host light festivals.
The city will also adopt universal design, tackling various social issues like aging populations, single-person households, safety, and youth problems from a public design perspective, with the goal of creating a city considerate toward the socially disadvantaged.
Citizens’ participation in public design will increase through programs like the Citizen Empathy Design Group and Our Neighborhood Designers. Additionally, the “Big Design Hub Center” will be established to offer design services and experiences to businesses and citizens.
Prior to the meeting, Busan City and the Busan Police Agency signed a business agreement to implement a traffic signal maintenance plan in conjunction with the “emptying the city” project.
Mayor Park stated, “Public design is a key factor in enhancing a city’s dignity, economic value, emotional well-being, satisfaction, and happiness of citizens, thereby directly improving their quality of life.” He emphasized the aim for Busan to be recognized as a leading city of public spaces, advancing its profile as a global hub city.