Choe Dong-min marks first 100 days of elected term with '8 Changes, 100 Promises' plan; vision spans lifestyle, care and a decade-long leap for Cheongnyangni
Dongdaemun-gu held a future-vision forum at the district office Thursday afternoon, laying out its agenda for the current elected term — including plans to build a "10-minute city" and develop Cheongnyangni into Seoul's fourth major urban center.
The event, themed "The First 100 Days of the Ninth Elected Term: A Four-Year Promise to Residents," drew local residents, community figures and district office staff. District Mayor Choe Dong-min took the podium himself to present the term's "8 Changes, 100 Promises."
At the heart of the plan is the "Dongdaemun Triple-10" framework, built around three pillars: "10 minutes to everyday life," "10 minutes to peace of mind" and "a decade-long leap." The concept aims to shorten the physical distance between residents and the facilities they need, reduce the psychological distance between people and the help they seek, and lay the groundwork for the district's next ten years.
The first pillar — "10 minutes to everyday life" — targets a living environment where parks, libraries and sports facilities are all within a 10-minute walk. Planned projects include a combined cultural and welfare complex in Jangan 1 and 2 dong and Hoegi-dong, five district-wide cultural and sports hubs, and a smart healthcare center in each neighborhood. The district also plans to create a walking trail linking the forests of Hongneung, Baebongsan and Cheongjangsan with nearby streams, and to introduce a public circulator bus connecting subway stations with residential neighborhoods to cut travel times.
The second pillar — "10 minutes to peace of mind" — addresses psychological distance. Its centerpiece is the creation of a dedicated loneliness-care division and an integrated care system tailored to Dongdaemun-gu. The district will proactively reach out to residents who struggle to ask for help, providing age-appropriate support from infants to the elderly. Also introduced were plans for a late-night pediatric clinic, a midnight-hours hospital, a mobile senior health management service, and a home-repair support center offering help with tasks such as fixing door handles and replacing light bulbs.
The district also plans to establish a Dongdaemun jobs company to support employment for young people, middle-aged residents and senior citizens, while expanding a safe-return-home escort service and intelligent CCTV coverage to strengthen public safety.
Cheongnyangni anchors the long-term vision of "a decade-long leap." Choe said he intends to develop the area into Seoul's new fourth urban center — a hub for business, employment, tourism and culture. The district will pursue high-density mixed-use development in the Cheongnyangni transit-oriented area and work with the central government and the Seoul Metropolitan Government to accelerate the ground-breaking of the GTX-B and GTX-C lines, bring forward the completion of the Myeongmok Line, and establish a wide-area transit transfer center at Cheongnyangni Station.
Developing a "Global K-Market" by connecting nine traditional markets in the Cheongnyangni area is another key goal. Plans include creating a Korean medicine street, redesigning the markets' visual identity, and improving parking and delivery access — all aimed at turning the area into a tourist destination for visitors from around the world.
The district will also pursue AI and science-focused future education, support for youth employment, entrepreneurship and housing, and climate-crisis response measures. It plans to expand participatory budgeting and online civic engagement, and to launch a Dongdaemun-gu-style residents' self-governance council that gives community members a direct say in proposing and selecting local projects.
The event featured a string quartet made up of instructors from the Dongdaemun District Youth Orchestra, who performed a congratulatory piece. A video was also screened documenting the district mayor's community outreach over the past 100 days, including visits to traditional markets and meetings with residents and young people. Attendees joined a vision ceremony, chanting: "Ten minutes for residents' lives, ten minutes for residents' hearts, ten years for residents' future" — a collective pledge to drive the changes ahead.
"Over the next four years, I will make sure these three things get done," Choe said. "I want to be a district mayor who is judged not by what was promised, but by what was changed."
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