Gakhwa-dong Agricultural Wholesale Market, which has served as a central pillar of distribution in Gwangju for 35 years, will relocate to the Hyoryeong, Yongjeon, and Yonggang-dong area in Buk-gu.
Gwangju Metropolitan City announced on the 3rd that the confirmed relocation site in the Hyoryeong, Yongjeon, and Yonggang-dong area offers excellent conditions as a transportation hub. The city said the site enables securing 320,000 square meters (98,000 pyeong) of land—approximately six times the size of the existing site—allowing flexible responses to changing distribution environments.
The city formed and operated a site selection committee to ensure expertise and objectivity in evaluating candidate sites proposed through a facility modernization study.
The committee selected the Hyoryeong, Yongjeon, and Yonggang-dong area in Buk-gu as the optimal location based on three key principles: accessibility through proximity to major expressways, speed of development through utilization of greenbelt zones, and expandability due to the standardized terrain.
Gwangju plans to apply for the "Public Wholesale Market Facility Modernization Project" competition hosted by the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs in the first half of this year. If selected, the city will invest a total project cost of 314.9 billion won with a target completion date of 2036.
The new agricultural wholesale market will be constructed as a four-story building with one basement level. It will feature a comprehensive logistics center equipped with advanced distribution systems and parking facilities accommodating over 2,000 vehicles to maximize accessibility and convenience for users.
The relocated wholesale market is planned to become a core hub for agricultural distribution in the integrated Jeonnam-Gwangju Special City, leveraging the nation's largest agricultural production hinterland following the Gwangju-South Jeolla integration. The concept involves building a distribution system connecting South Jeolla's production areas with Gwangju's wholesale market to enhance logistics efficiency and increase the added value of agricultural products, thereby achieving both higher incomes for farmers and greater consumer satisfaction.
Gwangju announced these plans the previous day at a resident briefing held at the Sihwa Culture Village Community Center in Gakhwa-dong, Buk-gu. Approximately 100 people attended, including Gwangju Mayor Kang Ki-jung, distribution industry workers, and residents. The session included open Q&A and opinion gathering.
"The relocation of the agricultural wholesale market will be a historic turning point in designing a new 100 years of agricultural distribution in the Honam region and a space for mutual prosperity between Gwangju and South Jeolla," Mayor Kang Ki-jung said. "We will respond strictly with zero tolerance to illegal dumping activities while seamlessly proceeding with follow-up procedures including the facility modernization competition to complete a central hub for agricultural distribution in Korea."