The area known as Jangjeon District 6, located just a 10-minute walk from Pusan National University (PNU) Busan campus, is referred to as an “abandoned space.” Currently, more than half of the entire Jangjeon-dong abandoned properties are concentrated in Jangjeon District 6. There are many houses with the word “To Be Demolished” painted in red, and neglected homes are filled with trash. Through the alleys, people can see an excavator left on the top of collapsed bricks. This scene starkly contrasts with the towering high-rise apartment complex standing prominently in front of Jangjeon District 6, creating a sense of discomfort for passersby and nearby residents.

Based on the comprehensive coverage by “Channel PNU” on October 30th, the Jangjeon District 6 corresponding to Jangjeon-dong 619-7 has been confirmed as a “Renewal District Cancellation Area” since 2014, and progress has not been made as of now. In 2007, the District 6 was designated as a “Housing Redevelopment District,” initiating discussions on redevelopment. However, due to various conflicts of interest surrounding the implementation of redevelopment over several years, it was removed from the redevelopment area by the Urban Planning Commission in 2014. This was a result of issues such as resident dissatisfaction with land and building appraisals and conflicts among residents, leading to the dissolution of redevelopment plans at that time.

In April 2016, there was another attempt to push forward with redevelopment, but once again, it fell through. Those envisioning the redevelopment gathered to form the "Jangjeon Central Area Housing Cooperative Promotion Committee (Promotion Committee)” and attempted to proceed with the project. However, they failed to meet the conditions for establishing a housing cooperative. In order to establish a housing association under the Housing Act, it is necessary to secure more than 80% of land use rights and 15% of land ownership of the site, and 95% of land ownership must be secured in order to obtain business approval after establishment. However, the promotion committee, in the absence of a successful land deal, used the loan intended for additional land acquisition, which was originally planned, for the remaining balance of the contracted land had already been completed. As a result, this led to the inability to proceed further with the project.

Meanwhile, there were also issues during the promotion committee's recruitment of members. According to Lee Jae-Yong, Councilor of Geumjeong-gu, in August 2017, the promotion committee was reported for violating the Housing Act due to non-compliance with the declaration of member recruitment under Article 11-3, Paragraph 1 of the act. Although the case was subject to prosecution suspension, there were subsequent rejections of member recruitment declarations. After facing difficulties in establishing the cooperative and eventually going bankrupt in February 2021, the properties owned by the promotion committee have since been dispersed through national auctions.

The deteriorating conditions in the District 6 eventually led to its designation as a “crime-ridden area.” Particularly, issues regarding public safety have consistently been raised, with numerous complaints related to security in Jangjeon District 6 to the Geumjeong-gu Council in Busan. Jangjeon District 6 is located near the school zone of Geumjeong elementary school, so the anxiety of residents living nearby is also growing. Resident A (71 years old) from Jangjeon District 6 said, “Middle and high school students often come here to smoke, and even the homeless not affiliated with the property owners secretly enter houses to live. It wouldn't be surprising if any crime were to occur in this area.”

Neglected abandoned houses are also bad for the health of nearby residents. According to a study titled “A Study on the Improvement of the Empty Homes Management Policy System Based on the Analysis of the Causes of Empty Homes and Neighborhood Impact,” presented by the Korea Research Institute for Human Settlements in 2020, vacant houses have been shown to cause hygiene-related damages and health deterioration in neighboring residents. In reality, the current District 6 has degraded into a makeshift garbage dump due to severe illegal dumping issues. Another resident B (82 years old), said, “Even now, people secretly dump garbage at night. In summer, It stinks a lot and it's crawling with bugs.”     

In response, both the police and the local government overseeing Jangjeon District 6 are exercising caution in managing the area. Jangjeon local police officers belonging to Geumjeong Police Station said that the patrol cycle of the District 6 is shorter than other areas. The Jangjeon Police Station mentioned, “Considering the proximity to an elementary school and the fact that construction in the area was initiated but later abandoned, we conduct patrols on foot and using police vehicles.”

Geumjeong-gu is considering the installation of an “autonomous guard post” as a practical measure to maintain public safety. In cooperation with the police, Geumjeong-gu plans to set up a guard post to monitor security in the District 6 and to provide a security base space where parents of nearby schools can participate in crime prevention. However, Geumjeong-gu is based on the police work, not the local government's own work, so the consultation between the agencies is complicated and faces a realistic problem of budgeting.

Councilor Lee, who has been involved in activities such as the Geumjeong-gu Urban Development Research Society, said, “In the case of illegal dumping of garbage, CCTV installation is being expanded, but there are many areas where security is lacking in reality only by current crime prevention activities. There is a clear need for practical and substantive measures to effectively respond to these issues.”

Policymakers consider the central government's urban regeneration New Deal policy as a potential breakthrough for the issues in District 6. It said that applying for support under the government's Urban Regeneration New Deal project, specifically the “Revitalize Our Neighborhood” policy, could be a solution. However, this is also deemed as a challenging situation in reality. Councilor Lee said, “Prior to applying, the designation as an urban regeneration revitalization area must be secured. However, there are practical difficulties due to the fact that some residents are advocating for other redevelopment projects and exercising development rights.”

In response to this, there is a consistent call for the initiation of redevelopment projects. C, a real estate agent operating near Jangjeon District 6, said, “If other redevelopment projects succeed, it could potentially resolve the current situation. Jangjeon District 6 has a good location, being flat and near an elementary school. However, due to the current economic conditions and issues related to the housing cooperative, people have been hesitant to step forward. Those who purchased through auctions are likely considering redevelopment in the future, so there is a possibility of redevelopment projects being pursued again.”

Reporter Cho Young-Min

Translated by Lim Chae-Kyung