The government and Seoul City on Monday announced a set of measures to turn the Hangang River into a major tourism hub by connecting the riverside and waterway to popular tourism sites in the city and by restoring the river’s ecosystem to maximize its attractions.

The focal point of the plan will be Yeouido in western Seoul, where amphibious vehicles and river ferries will carry tourists to and from the location to enjoy diverse cultural, sports and leisure experiences offered along the river by 2018.

Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Choi Kyung-hwan and Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon held a conference to release the measures prepared in conjunction with four different ministries over the past year.

“There are more opportunities now to make the service industry the country’s new growth engine, as neighboring countries show improved national income in light of the high popularity of hallyu,” Choi said.

“When more tourists visit the river and enjoy the river activities, more jobs will be consequently created in the fields of culture, distribution, sports, leisure and culture,” he said, estimating at least 4,000 new employment opportunities down the road.

Around 400 billion won ($330 million) will be invested by the central government and city government for various projects for the river including a forest, an integrated dock and large-scale cultural facilities to promote Hallyu, along with mobile container malls and amphibious buses.

Park emphasized the measures will also focus on restoring the river’s natural characteristics. “The Miracle on the Han also left behind damage to the Hangang River’s environment. ... The second Miracle on the Han will be to recover that,” Park said.

For this, the central and municipal governments will work to create an ecological space by restoring the stagnant waterway, they said.

The comprehensive plan, however, was a toned-down version of the original plan to overhaul the entire stretch of the Hangang River some 30 years after the river banks were refurbished on the occasion of the 1988 Seoul Olympics. The measures, instead, were downsized to focus on Yeouido areas.

The officials said while the river was divided into seven different zones in the review process, they eventually agreed to concentrate on the area stretching from Yeouido and Ichon that was deemed most effective in inducing tourism due to its high floating population and vicinity to other popular tourism destinations.

A new duty-free shop is to open at 63 Square in Yeouido, while another duty-free complex is planned in Yongsan near Ichon, just across the river.

Noryangjin Fisheries Wholesale Market adjacent to Yeouido is also to be relocated, and the National Federation of Fisheries Cooperatives is eyeing to establish an integrated resort there in replacement to encompass hotels, conventions and casinos.

The government said they hoped to raise the number of Hangang visitors by 65 million to 100 million annually by 2030. They also said the measures will help raise the ratio of foreign visitors coming to the Hangang River from the current 12.5 percent to around 20 percent.

From news reports (khnews@heraldcorp.com)