South Korea is again brimming with election pledges to build domed stadiums or cultural arenas to stimulate the local economy ahead of June's local elections, but watchers say the pledges may be unrealistic, citing unfulfilled pledges from politicians in the past.
Among the latest are Busan mayoral hopefuls Reps. Chun Jae-soo and Joo Jin-woo. Both lawmakers have pledged to turn Busan's North Port site into a cultural complex as part of a redevelopment project if they are elected.
Chun, a lawmaker of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea who was formerly oceans minister in the current Lee Jae Myung administration, announced Saturday that he envisions a "domed baseball stadium with a view of the ocean."
His plan was to move the Lotte Giants' home in the Korea Baseball Organization league to the proposed stadium with a retractable roof at the historic Busan North Port site. The Giants have been playing in Sajik Baseball Stadium, about 10 kilometers north of the port site, since 1986.
"I will create a space where people can watch baseball during the baseball season without worrying about rain, wind or fine dust, and enjoy exhibitions, stage performances, shopping and leisure activities during the off-season," Chun said on Facebook, soon after the Giants' opening day win in the 2026 season.
"Like (Oracle Park) in San Francisco, a seaside baseball stadium could turn into a cultural complex that is connected to Busan Station," he added, without detailed plans as to the capacity of the stadium, the exact location or financing for the proposed project.
Joo, a lawmaker of the main opposition People Power Party, countered Chun with a similar plan Monday to build a domed arena at the North Port site, tentatively dubbed Busan Ocean Dome.
Joo's plan differed from Chun's in that the proposed domed facility with a retractable roof would mainly be used as a concert venue for musicians not limited to K-pop artists, as well as a venue for esports events.
Under Joo's plan, Sajik Baseball Stadium would remain the home of the Giants after its ongoing renovation project, set for completion by 2031, and would become a main venue for sports fans in Busan, making it unnecessary for the Giants to relocate.
Also on Monday, Democratic Party Rep. Lee Won-taeg, who is seeking the governorship of North Jeolla Province, said he would push to build a domed baseball stadium in the province and expand the KBO league with the addition of the 11th professional team playing there if elected as governor.
The proposed domed facility would operate year-round, Lee said at a press conference.
"The new stadium will not merely be a baseball stadium used for only half the year," Lee said. "We will make the most of the property by adopting a multipurpose model similar to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in the United Kingdom."
The dome arms race also includes a proposed plan in Cheonan, South Chungcheong Province, to build a domed baseball stadium with a capacity of some 50,000 by 2031.
Yang Seung-jo, South Chungcheong Province governor hopeful of the Democratic Party, said Monday at a press conference that the campaign's domed stadium pledge resembles that of incumbent Gov. Kim Tae-heum, who is running again in June.
But Yang said his plan would not require provincial government spending, pledging to fully cover the construction cost with central government funding by reviving the stalled megacity plan in the region and with subsequent state budgetary support.
Rep. Jeon Hyun-heui of the Democratic Party, running for Seoul mayor, in February unveiled plans to build a "Seoul Dome" that could be used as a sports complex at the site of Dongdaemun Design Plaza in Dongdaemun-gu, Seoul.
Similar promises have also been made in North Chungcheong Province, as well as Goyang, Paju, Guri and Gwangmyeong in Gyeonggi Province.
The KBO currently has 10 baseball teams nationwide, with only one of them, the Kiwoom Heroes, using a domed stadium, the Gocheok Sky Dome in western Seoul. The stadium, with a capacity of about 17,000, does not feature a retractable roof.
South Korea is expecting two more domed baseball stadiums. One of them, SSG Landers Stadium for the SSG Landers in the Cheongna neighborhood of Incheon, is under construction and set for completion by the end of 2027. The other, Jamsil Domed Stadium, planned through a reconstruction of the existing home for the LG Twins and Doosan Bears, has yet to break ground but is set to open in 2032.
One expert assessed that having more domed baseball stadiums could build momentum for the KBO, but what is more important is for politicians to live up to their promises.
Over the past decade, especially before the local elections, mayoral hopefuls in Seoul, Daejeon and Busan, among others, pledged to build domed stadiums that did not materialize.
"Had all political promises been kept, Busan would have had at least three baseball stadiums," Min Hoon-ki, a SPOTV baseball commentator, told The Korea Herald, acknowledging that a domed stadium "will have many uses" in the offseason.
Min added that expanding the KBO to an 11th team would be unrealistic, given that the structural challenges of the professional league, due to a diminishing talent pool amid the country's population decline, have already made it far from sustainable with its 10-team system.
consnow@heraldcorp.com
