'Development benefits must reach the whole community'
Lawmaker stresses tangible results for residents
'I will pursue politics that looks at both the present and the future'
"I will make sure the results of the large-scale development projects under way in Yongsan translate into real changes in residents' lives."
Choi Yu-hee, a Seoul Metropolitan Council member representing Yongsan 2 for the People Power Party, won re-election in the June 3 local elections. In a recent interview, she said balanced development that residents can feel firsthand would be the focus of her work over the next four years.
Choi said she sees her re-election as both an assessment of her previous four years in office and a mandate carrying greater responsibility. "My sense of responsibility to answer the trust residents have placed in me with concrete results has grown even stronger," she said. "I will pay closer attention to ensuring that the changes in Yongsan lead to genuine happiness for the people who live there."
Choi described Yongsan as the heart of Seoul and a key district that will drive South Korea's future. With major projects concentrated there — including an international business district, Yongsan Park, Hannam New Town and the redevelopment of the railway maintenance yard site — she said the area is undergoing the most dynamic transformation in the city.
Even as large-scale development proceeds, she said, it cannot be called true progress if residents do not feel the change in their everyday lives. Improvements in quality of life and the expansion of everyday infrastructure must keep pace with the speed of development, she said.
'Redevelopment and reconstruction change how residents live'
Choi cited laying the groundwork for redevelopment and reconstruction projects in Yongsan as the most meaningful achievement of her previous term.
She said she had worked with the Seoul Metropolitan Government through the council to ensure that various improvement projects — including the fast-track integrated planning scheme — could proceed smoothly, and had sought ways to provide institutional support. She said she had particularly focused on conveying to city hall the concerns of residents who had long suffered delays, and on resolving problems that arose during the project process.
Choi framed redevelopment and reconstruction not as simply putting up new buildings, but as a long-term investment in improving the residential environment and strengthening the area's competitiveness. Such projects connect housing improvements with upgrades to transportation, education and everyday living conditions, she said, making them an important policy for raising residents' quality of life.
She identified her most pressing task going forward as ensuring that residents can directly feel the benefits of development.
Yongsan is home to a concentration of large-scale projects set to reshape Seoul's future — among them the international business district, Yongsan Park, Hannam New Town and various urban renewal schemes. Choi said policy efforts are needed to ensure the effects of development spread across Yongsan as a whole, rather than remaining confined to specific pockets of the district.
To that end, she said she would push for the smooth progress of redevelopment and reconstruction projects while also working to expand transportation, education, parking and everyday social infrastructure. Improvements to the daily infrastructure that residents feel most directly are just as important as enhancing the city's overall competitiveness, she said.
"Urban growth and improvements in residents' quality of life must go hand in hand," she said. "I will pursue balanced development in which the benefits of development reach every resident."
'Politics that addresses today while preparing for tomorrow'
Choi said the guiding principle she has maintained throughout her time in office is "politics that solves today's problems while preparing for the future." Handling residents' complaints is a basic duty, she said, but preparing the district for 10 or 20 years from now is equally important work for an elected official. Her focus, she said, has been on building a foundation for sustainable development rather than settling for short-term results.
She added that as a returning lawmaker she intends to bring a broader perspective and a stronger sense of responsibility than she had in her first term, serving as a bridge between local issues and Seoul Metropolitan Government policy. Choi said she would continue to put residents' voices first and pursue accountable legislative work that considers both the district's future and Seoul's competitiveness.
"Seoul is a city of constant change and growth, but citizens must always be at its center," she said. "Yongsan in particular symbolizes Seoul's future, and I will do my utmost to ensure that the gains from development translate into a better quality of life for the people who live here."
"Building on the responsibility that comes with re-election, I will prepare for the future together with citizens and repay their trust with results they can feel," she added.
7toy7@heraldcorp.com
