At a press conference on the 2nd, Busan Mayor Park Hyung-joon presented a development direction for the ‘old Busan University of Foreign Studies site’ and announced that the area would be developed as a ‘game industry base region’.
Mayor Park held a press conference in the briefing room of the Busan City Hall on the morning of the 2nd and announced, “We will develop the site of the former Busan University of Foreign Studies into a game industry base, and leap forward as a game mecca city that attracts attention from the world.”
The former site of Busan University of Foreign Studies has been neglected for a long time since Busan University of Foreign Studies moved to Namsan-dong, Geumjeong-gu in February 2014.
In December 2019, the city signed a business agreement with the Korea Land and Housing Corporation to revitalize the area and promoted the public development of the former Busan University of Foreign Studies site. The sale was difficult.
To come up with countermeasures, the city held several consultations and meetings with the Korea Land and Housing Corporation and worked tirelessly for public development. has been delivered
As public development became impossible, the city presented development guidelines for the former Pusan University of Foreign Studies site to private operators. The main contents are to reduce the ratio of residential land and increase the ratio of land for business facilities to revitalize the local economy ravaged by long-term neglect, and to sufficiently guarantee public contribution to recover development profits. decided to accept
Specifically, private business operators will consider reducing the ratio of residential land from 46.4% to 38% and increasing the ratio of land for business facilities from 18.2% to 39.1%. In addition, for public contribution, 12,906㎡ of office space will be donated to the city.
Originally, the ratio of residential land that Korea Land and Housing Corporation and Busan City had negotiated with in 2019 was 38.5% and 31.6% for office facilities. Compared to the development direction discussed by the city with private companies, the ratio of residential land was lowered and the ratio of business land was expanded, so that the public contribution was more fully guaranteed than the public development planned with Korea Land and Housing Corporation.
Under this development direction, the city of Busan will develop the site of the former Pusan University of Foreign Studies as a base for the game industry. The city plans to create a game content business park on the site of business facilities that will receive donations, and create a game industry startup ecosystem by attracting game industry-related public institutions, research institutes, educational institutions, and private companies. The game content business park and the city’s game industry-related vision and policies create a synergistic effect so that the city can leap forward as a global game mecca.
Mayor Park Hyung-joon said, “The game industry is a field with infinite potential.” “It is an industry that accounts for about 70% of the content exported by Korea. It is growing at a rapid pace,” he said, emphasizing the importance of nurturing the game industry.
In the future, the city plans to make efforts to allow game industry-related workers to move into the residential areas that will be built on the site of the former Pusan University of Foreign Studies in the future, and to secure green spaces such as parks for local residents to use together as much as possible.
When the private business operator who purchased the site submits a development plan that meets the city’s development guidelines, the city will go through a process of collecting opinions, such as expert opinions, consultation with the city and architecture joint committee, and listening to the opinions of the city council. We plan to do everything we can to ensure that it is promoted as a development that has secured public interest.
Busan Mayor Park Hyung-jun said, “Our city has sufficient capacity and potential to become a global game mecca. It is already recognized at home and abroad as the host city of the world-famous international game exhibition ‘G-Star’, attracts ‘Sandbox Gaming’, a regional esports professional club for the first time in a domestic esports professional league, ) Busan,” a city with a systematic game industry nurturing strategy.
In addition, “Our city will develop the site of the former Busan University of Foreign Studies as a game industry base, leap forward as a game mecca city that draws attention from the world, and create a wave of innovation in Busan once again,” he said. We will make sure that the secured development can be promoted so that it can be a strength to the lives of local residents.”
