Dongducheon, a city in Gyeonggi Province, is transforming a prostitution district that had been neglected for 60 years into a cultural park and a 35-year-old food stall village into a public rest area for citizens. The city is being credited with dramatically improving residents' living environment by resolving long-unsolved urban challenges one after another during the four years of the eighth popularly elected local government.
According to Dongducheon on Tuesday, the city has resolved deep-rooted urban problems one by one, including the redevelopment of the 75 Row Houses on Pyeonghwa-ro, the closure of the prostitution district in Saengyeon-dong, the removal of illegal street vendors on Soyosan, and the redevelopment of the food stall village near Seoneop Bridge on the Sincheon River.
Soon after taking office, Dongducheon Mayor Park Heong-deok heard citizens' aspirations for "streets where children can walk with peace of mind and clean neighborhoods free of neglected vacant houses." In response, the city concentrated its administrative efforts on making the spaces where citizens walk and live every day safer and more pleasant, rather than focusing on the city's outward appearance.
In January this year, the city finalized the "Pyeonghwa-ro Street Environment Improvement Project." Pyeonghwa-ro is the central axis connecting the north and south of Dongducheon, but aging buildings and narrow walkways raised significant pedestrian safety concerns. In particular, the "75 Row Houses," two-story buildings constructed in 1975, were cited as a representative task in the redevelopment of the old downtown due to the rising number of vacant and abandoned houses.
The city is pursuing the redevelopment of the 75 Row Houses across two sections, from Saenggol Intersection to Bosan Intersection. It will demolish the buildings and expand the walkway from the existing 20 meters to 28 meters. In the remaining space, the city plans to create small parks and green areas to improve commuting safety for students at eight nearby schools.
◇Prostitution District Closed After 60 Years, Transformed into Cultural and Rest Space
"Saengyeon 7-ri," the prostitution district in Saengyeon-dong, was completely closed after 60 years. The city formed a task force (TF) to push for the closure in November 2022 and completed the urban management plan facility decision in 2024. It purchased eight idle buildings within the district and demolished some of them.
Beyond mere physical redevelopment, the city is also pursuing human rights protection measures, such as linking on-site support projects and self-reliance support ordinances to assist victims of prostitution in becoming self-supporting and reintegrating into society.
These efforts led to selection in the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport's "Aging Residential Area Redevelopment Support Project" competition in December 2025 and the securing of 15 billion won in state funding.
The city plans to create the 5,505-square-meter "Saengyeon Cultural Park" at the site. The plan is to draw up an optimal proposal through a design competition and transform the dark and deteriorated old downtown into a cultural and rest space that any citizen can use.
◇Soyosan Vendors Removed, Setting Stage for Tourism Hub Leap
Soyosan also saw major changes. In April 2024, the city removed illegal street vendors that had operated on Soyosan for more than 30 years. This became the foundation for the "Soyosan Expanded Development Project," a key pledge of the eighth popularly elected local government.
The city is pursuing 25 detailed projects by 2030 across approximately 500,000 square meters of the Soyosan area. So far, it has completed six projects, including the creation of 229 additional parking spaces and the development of the Soyo Star and Forest theme park, where 167,000 azaleas were planted.
A tourism hub facility being pursued in collaboration with SBS is scheduled for completion in the second half of this year. The city is also pursuing the creation of a companion animal theme park and a 36-hole park golf course at a project cost of 25 billion won.
The food stall village near Seoneop Bridge on the Sincheon River was also redeveloped. The 12 aging food stalls, which had stood there for 35 years since 1989, drew constant complaints over hygiene and noise problems. The city invested 1.1 billion won to completely remove the food stalls and complete the redevelopment of the riverbank and the bicycle path.
"A city's dignity does not begin with grand slogans, but with the cleanliness of the streets citizens walk every day and the safety of the alley in front of their homes," Mayor Park Heong-deok said. "Resolving these long-standing challenges over the past four years was a process to return a complete daily life to citizens."
He stressed, "Going forward, we will carry out major projects without setbacks, including the creation of a park golf course, a companion animal theme park, and ecological river restoration within the Soyosan area expanded development project, to complete Dongducheon as a clean, refined city that citizens can feel."
