"Residents are everything. We must keep our eyes on them alone."
Mapo-gu District Mayor Yoo Dong-gyun has placed communication at the heart of his administration as it enters its ninth elected term.
Yoo, who has championed open communication as a core governing value since the seventh elected term, released a dedicated text-only mobile number (010-9323-9801) immediately after his election victory so residents could submit complaints directly. He then took his first step toward on-the-ground engagement by personally visiting all 16 neighborhood community centers for a series of "dialogues with residents."
At the session held at Daeheung-dong Community Center on July 15, Yoo opened by inviting residents to speak freely. "Please say everything you want to say," he told the crowd. "Don't think of me as the district mayor — think of me as a neighbor, a sunbae or a junior, and feel comfortable saying whatever is on your mind."
Mapo-gu conducted the dialogue sessions at all 16 neighborhood community centers in the district from July 10 to July 20. The sessions, the first official public forum since the launch of the ninth elected term, saw Yoo visit every neighborhood in person to hear residents' views and respond to local issues.
This year, the entire series of 16 sessions was broadcast live on Mapo-gu's official YouTube channel, "Mapo Broadcasting," so that residents unable to attend in person could follow along and engage with local issues regardless of time or location.
A total of 144 proposals were submitted during the sessions. Residents raised a wide range of concerns — from everyday quality-of-life issues such as repairs to aging sidewalks, the creation of new parking facilities and the expansion of sports amenities, to the acceleration of redevelopment and reconstruction projects and improvements to senior center facilities.
Improvements to senior centers emerged as a common concern across a significant number of neighborhoods. In response, the district plans to conduct a comprehensive survey of all senior centers in the area and carry out phased upgrades to aging facilities and their operating conditions.
In neighborhoods with pending urban renewal projects — including Gongdeok-dong, Ahyeon-dong, Dohwa-dong, Daeheung-dong and Yeomni-dong — residents pressed for faster progress on redevelopment and reconstruction and asked for updates on ongoing projects.
Yoo said his first official act as district mayor in the ninth term was to establish a redevelopment and reconstruction rapid-implementation TF. "I know very well how worn out residents become when urban renewal projects stall with no progress," he said. "We will work to accelerate project timelines through administrative support from specialists."
For issues that could not be answered on the spot, Yoo promised to meet with residents again after a thorough review by the relevant departments.
The morning after completing all 16 sessions — on Tuesday, July 21 — Yoo visited Ahyeon-dong alongside relevant civil servants to personally inspect the site and present solutions, making good on the promise he had made to residents.
Even when some residents voiced sharp complaints, Yoo kept the conversation going. "Problems are not solved by covering them up," he said. "We can only find a way forward by bringing them into the open and discussing them together."
"The one thing that has never changed in how I approach running this district is the importance I place on communicating with residents," Yoo said. "I will pay close attention and follow through so that the valuable opinions shared during these dialogues can translate into real change and progress for Mapo."
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