[Chungbuk Tourism Focus] ③ Same budget, conflicting report cards… The power to revive the original downtown is

[Editor's note = Competition between local governments to attract tourists is intensifying. Several policies are being promoted, such as increasing accommodations, building transportation networks, and revitalizing the original downtown so that tourists can stay in the region. The creation of regional tourism zones and the establishment of tourism corporations are also representative measures proposed by local governments. Yonhap News will publish a planned article five times every Wednesday starting October 28 that points out the effects and limitations of major tourism policies and explores future tasks to increase effectiveness.]

(Chungju = Yonhap News) Reporter Cheon Gyeong-hwan = The core axis of revitalizing the original downtown is tourism.

It creates a virtuous cycle that increases floating population, generates consumption, and further creates jobs.

At the center is a young person. It serves as a priming water that fills the old city center with new content and revitalizes it.

This is why local governments across the country are putting effort into youth entrepreneurship policies, such as creating youth malls and supporting monthly rent.

However, it is rare for cases where a huge budget is invested to lead to actual results.

◇ The two faces of SNS hot spot Gwanagol

According to Chungju City on the 11th, the city promoted a remodeling support project for 36 empty houses from 2016 to 2022 to revitalize the area of 'Gwanagol' (Seongnae-dong and Seongseo-dong), the center of the old Chungju town castle and an alley in the old city center.

In Seongnae-dong and Seongseong-dong, 18 each were selected for remodeling empty houses and subsidies were invested, but the commercial topography of the two districts changed significantly.

Unlike Seongnae-dong, which emerged as a tourist hub centered on social networking services (SNS) with unique shops gathered along the hanok alleys, Seongseong-dong, which is centered around large shopping malls along the main street, has a high proportion of franchises and even stores are scattered, failing to create a unique color.

An official from Chungju City explained, "In Seongnae-dong, there is a high rate of early entrants continuing to run stores, but in Seongseong-dong, there were many cases of changing businesses after support ended because the building rent was relatively high."

The solidarity of young entrepreneurs exists behind the transformation of Seongnae-dong into a tourist base, and CEO Lee Sang-chang (43) is at the center of this.

CEO Lee, who worked as an urban regeneration consultant in Chungju, purchased a neglected old building in Seongnae-dong, where the vacant house rate was over 60%, in May 2018 and opened 'Sesangsanghoe', a complex cultural space.

As differentiated contents such as rooftop performances and yoga classes spread through word of mouth, unique youth stores began to open one by one in the once stagnant alleys.

The merchants agreed on the value that the entire alley should grow together and formed the 'Botam Plus' cooperative.

They introduced 'Damjang Market', an alley market that organized the Seongnae-dong area like a department store without government support, and led the influx of tourists and new entrepreneurs through cooperation between merchants, such as planning joint events by using each other's spaces as joint workspaces.

CEO Lee explained, "I thought that 100 neighborhood stores with sales of 10 billion won would be a greater force to the region than one company with sales of 10 billion won. While the existing merchant association is an organizational system that is good at maintenance, management, and repair, our method is to take turns responsibly discovering and operating networks and businesses necessary for the commercial district, with each store taking turns discovering and operating them as needed."

In this process, government support did not function as the main driving force, but only as an auxiliary means to help young people start businesses.

This is because young people have developed self-reliance and competitiveness in the process of taking risks and building businesses.

He emphasized, "At the time we received support for remodeling empty houses, we had already invested 200 million won to purchase old houses and proceed with construction," and added, "Rather than relying on local government support, young people should invest their own funds, time, and labor to develop a sense of responsibility and ensure sustainability."

In fact, Gwanagol merchants are expanding their profit base by introducing their own brands, such as local lifestyle brand 'EME' (Emae) and community beer 'QUAL', in order to reduce dependence on government support.

Representative Lee added, “In the future, we need an ecosystem-centered policy that goes beyond individual support and discovers and grows content together,” adding, “Regardless of whether or not they belong to a merchant association, we must pay attention to the role of local creators who create new value in the region and lead revitalization.”

◇ Festival competitiveness is ‘storytelling’

The role of festivals in downtown tourism cannot be overlooked.

It is a driving force that attracts crowds in a short period of time and a means of raising awareness by allowing people to experience the place value and entertainment of the original downtown in one place.

However, while there are festivals that attract visitors even with a similar budget, there are also festivals that do not meet expectations.

The 'Red Odeng (fish cake)' festival, Jecheon City's representative food, is considered a model example.

It is known that red oden was sold at food stalls near Jecheon Jungang Market in the 1980s and then spread throughout the country, becoming a local specialty.

Taking advantage of the name that has been established among citizens for a long time, the city held its first festival at the end of February last year after completing trademark registration with the Korean Intellectual Property Office (currently the Intellectual Property Office) in 2021.

The purpose is to revitalize the stagnant downtown commercial district and promote local food.

Instead of building a separate large event hall, the city installed 25 booths at Jecheon Station Square, a place steeped in history and memories.

The movement route was designed so that visitors who enjoyed the festival at the square could naturally flow to the nearby Jungang Market and the famous medicinal herb market on foot.

The results exceeded expectations. It costs 80 million won to hold a three-day event, but one festival attracted 20,000 visitors and recorded sales of more than 300 million won.

Baek Chang-hyeon, secretary general of the Jecheon City Tourism Council, which hosted the event, said, "If we add transportation, lodging, and consumption in the surrounding commercial districts, the actual economic ripple effect will be greater. Next year, we will develop it into a comprehensive gourmet festival in conjunction with the Frozen Festival."

On the other hand, the Jecheon Craft Beer and Moonlight Night Market Festival, which had a similar amount of budget invested, achieved relatively poor results.

The event, which had been held twice a year starting in 2022, was reduced to once this year, and with 16 stores participating, only about 10,000 visitors visited over three days.

Economic ripple effects, such as restaurant sales, were not separately calculated.

It has been pointed out that it is difficult to secure an appeal that can differentiate it from other local festivals with just the popular subject of beer.

A city official said, "We are struggling to come up with a plan to differentiate the festival. This year, we linked it with the film festival event, and we will strive to diversify the concept in the future so that more citizens can visit it."

Experts agree that the competitiveness of a festival depends on how well local stories are brought to life.

Choi Sang-gyu, a professor of tourism management at Cheongju University, suggested, "Just as people are instinctively drawn to stories, festivals must also have content containing unique stories so that tourists can feel local identity and experience escape from everyday life." He added, "Festivals held by local governments tend to focus on producing results in a short period of time, but we need to discover themes that embody the identity of the original city center and continue the festival on a regular basis."