City to focus on youth settlement, transport infrastructure overhaul, dam-based regional development model, downtown revival and international sports hub
Chuncheon Mayor Yuk Dong-han, who won reelection, held a press briefing Tuesday on the policy direction for his incoming second term, saying it would be "a period for completing the development tasks built during the first term and delivering results that citizens can feel in their daily lives."
To prepare systematically for the launch of the new term, the city will form a dedicated launch task force headed by the vice mayor.
The task force will include department heads and outside experts, and will be responsible for reviewing the progress of existing projects and fleshing out new campaign pledges.
Going forward, the administration will maintain continuity with the major initiatives pursued during the first term while moving in earnest to translate them into tangible results for residents.
The key policy directions are: creating a city where young people settle, overhauling transport infrastructure, building a dam-based regional co-prosperity development model, revitalizing the old downtown and completing an international sports city.
On youth, the city plans to expand quality jobs centered on future growth hubs — including the Corporate Innovation Park, the Camp Page urban regeneration innovation district and the hydrothermal energy cluster — and to cultivate AI, quantum and biotech industries to make Chuncheon a city where young people choose to stay.
On transport, the city will pursue an extension of the GTX-B line to Chuncheon, construction of a road network linking the second Gyeongchun Expressway, and inclusion of the Gangwon Inland Line in national infrastructure plans, all aimed at strengthening connectivity with the Greater Seoul area and within Gangwon Province. Autonomous driving buses and expanded cycling infrastructure will also be rolled out in phases.
The city also plans to build what it says would be the country's first dam-based regional co-prosperity development model through initiatives such as a sunlight-and-water pension scheme and floating solar power projects anchored on the Soyang River Dam and Chuncheon Dam.
To revitalize the old downtown, the city will push the "Ribbon City Project" — expanding commercial district support, cultural space development and startup support — until the results of the urban regeneration innovation district and transit-oriented area development become visible.
The city also plans to strengthen its foundation as an international sports hub through the construction of a World Taekwondo headquarters building, the securing of an international ice rink and the construction of a dedicated soccer stadium.
Chuncheon plans to finalize the details of its key initiatives this month before officially announcing the second-term policy direction and specific action plans to residents on July 1.
The city also plans to build an integrated cooperative relationship with the Chuncheon City Council centered on residents' lives, maintain close communication, and discuss ways to advance Chuncheon's development through coordination with Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province.
"If the first-term policy goals were drawn up by reflecting the views of citizens and experts, the second term will develop that approach more systematically and translate it into concrete results," Mayor Yuk said. "I will think carefully about how to accelerate existing projects and manage risks systematically to maximize their impact."
"The support you have given me is a solemn mandate from the citizens to open Chuncheon's future further and more firmly," Yuk said. "I will serve as a faithful instrument of the people and see Chuncheon's transformation through to the end."
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