On the 21st, Gyeonggi Province Deputy Governor Koh Young-min announced at a press conference that the procedures for relocating the Gyeonggi Housing and Urban Corporation (GH) to Guri would be halted. This decision follows Guri City’s unwavering intention to be incorporated into Seoul. Deputy Governor Koh expressed regret over the mayor of Guri’s push for incorporation into Seoul and stated that as a corresponding measure, all procedures related to the GH relocation to Guri would be completely stopped.
Deputy Governor Koh criticized the current stance of the Guri mayor, who insists on pursuing both the GH relocation and incorporation into Seoul simultaneously, stating, “This is contradictory. If Guri gets incorporated into Seoul, there would be no reason for the Gyeonggi public institution GH to move to Guri.”
Guri City was selected as the relocation site for GH through a public proposal in 2021, planning a new building for GH headquarters on a 9,600㎡ site in Topyeong-dong, with 3 underground and 19 above-ground floors. Gyeonggi Governor Kim Dong-yeon had announced the ‘Gyeonggi Northern Major Remodeling Project,’ which included plans to relocate GH to Guri by 2026. Gyeonggi Province anticipated benefits such as an annual increase of approximately 8 billion KRW in local income tax, employment for 655 staff, and 15,000 annual visitors, which would boost the local economy.
Deputy Governor Koh also urged Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon to halt the incorporation attempts of Guri City and Gimpo City into Seoul, questioning whether these moves align with the recent call for constitutional amendments for local autonomy.
Shin Dong-hwa, chairman of the Guri City Council, commented on the suspension of the GH relocation procedure, stating that he had pointed out the contradictions of pursuing both the incorporation into Seoul and the GH relocation as a hasty and contradictory policy along with Democratic Party council members. As the council chairman, he strongly criticized Mayor Baek Kyung-hyun’s uncertain and ambiguous stance and the city’s passive response regarding the GH relocation.