District formally requests action on Songdo subdivision, regional transit expansion, biotech infrastructure and other growth projects

Yeonsu-gu District Chief Lee Jae-ho and district officials pose with the "Yeonsu-gu No. 1 Proposal" before its delivery to Incheon City. [Incheon Yeonsu-gu]
Yeonsu-gu District Chief Lee Jae-ho and district officials pose with the "Yeonsu-gu No. 1 Proposal" before its delivery to Incheon City. [Incheon Yeonsu-gu]

Incheon's Yeonsu-gu launched a push for broader metropolitan cooperation on key local issues on the first day of the ninth directly elected administration.

The district formally delivered its "Yeonsu-gu No. 1 Proposal" to Incheon City on Tuesday, calling on the city to address eight priority tasks aimed at achieving balanced development between Songdo and older neighborhoods while laying the groundwork for future growth.

The proposal covers four items: establishing a new Songdo-gu by subdividing the current district; reviewing the plan to relocate the Incheon Port Authority headquarters to Jemuipo; accelerating regional transit projects — including an extension of Incheon Metro Line 1 Section 8, the GTX-B line, a multimodal transfer center at Songdo KTX station, and a Songdo tram; and developing a global AI auto valley.

Four additional local issues were also put forward: normalizing the urban development and theme park project on the former Daewoo Motor Sales site in Songdo; establishing the Incheon Bio Science and Technology Institute and attracting a public medical school; raising the standard floor-area ratio for aging planned-city redevelopment projects; and reviewing the freight parking lot plan for Songdo Section 9 while securing an alternative site.

The district said it intends to strengthen coordination with the city to ensure the proposals translate into concrete action, noting that the requests align with the ninth administration's key policy directions — including creating a new Songdo-gu, building a global AI hub and fostering the biotech industry.

"Starting with the delivery of the No. 1 Proposal on the first day of the ninth administration, we will work actively with Incheon City to bring about changes that residents can feel," district chief Lee Jae-ho said. "We will focus our administrative capacity on ensuring that the priority tasks reflecting the wishes of Yeonsu-gu's 440,000 residents are linked to city policy and produce results."

Meanwhile, the district plans to flesh out the key tasks in the proposal, gather departmental action plans and public input, and finalize the ninth administration's campaign pledges in October.


gilbert@heraldcorp.com