The organizing committee of the Busan International Architectural Culture Festival is holding a design competition to revamp a deserted bunker from the early 1900s Japanese colonial era into a new tourist attraction in Busan.

The Busan Metropolitan Government has allotted some 100 billion won ($86.5 million) in redeveloping the long-neglected site and its surrounding areas in the district of Yeonje-gu in the city.

The application is open to Korean and foreign professional architects and students. The registration for applicants runs until May 20 at bunker.biacf.org. Applicants who register within the deadline are eligible to submit design plans. 

On-site briefing for applicants will be held at 2 p.m. on April 19 and May 20 at the bunker site. Submission of design plans is due on June 30. The BAF will review designs from July 7-12 and announce winners on July 15 on the website.

The winner will be awarded $50,000, and given a chance to participate in the designing process with the owner of the property Kyungdong Construction Co. The second place winner will receive $30,000 won, while third place will receive $10,000 and fourth will get $5,000.

The 4,000-square-meter bunker is located on the northern edge of Mount Hwangryeongsan, in Mulmangol -- “village with plenty of water” in Korean. The area has been known for rich water resources from the mountain. The bunker was used as a military operation facility with 65 rooms in the 1960s, but has been left unattended for more than a decade.

For more information, call (051) 744-7728.

By Lee Woo-young (wylee@heraldcorp.com)