KINTEX-Samsung Station GTX solves accessibility to Gangnam and increases investors’ attention  

◇ With the announcement of the prompt establishment of the Great Train Express (GTX) from the Ilsan KINTEX to Samsung Station by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, and Transport, the HallyuWorld project being propelled by Gyeonggi Province also achieves greater vitalization. ⓒ Gyeonggi G-News

With the announcement of the prompt establishment of the Great Train Express (GTX) from the Ilsan KINTEX to Samsung Station by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, and Transport (MOLIT), the HallyuWorld project being propelled by Gyeonggi Province also achieves greater vitalization.

The HallyuWorld Project Team announced on March 10 that, after the announcement of the GTX project, the number of inquiries regarding site purchases for hotels or theme park facilities around HallyuWorld increased by about 30%.

“It’s definitely a big change in atmosphere, considering that the relevant site is a large-scale offer that ordinary people are not likely to purchase easily,” said an official of the HallyuWorld Project Team. “The accessibility to Seoul’s Gangnam area, which had been the biggest disadvantage in the development of the HallyuWorld, improved to only a 20-minute distance. Accordingly, investors have become much more positive and enthusiastic than before.”

The real estate market near HallyuWorld is also anticipating the new GTX route. “There were no transactions in January and February, but in March there were four, showing some expectations for the confirmed GTX route,” said the owner of real estate agency H located in Janghang-dong, Goyang City. “The market will be more active once construction actually begins.”

Accordingly, to prepare for the increase in visits and inquiries by investors interested in the sites, the HallyuWorld Project Team plans to supply sites for accommodations in the first-half year, and sites for complex facilities and business facilities in the second-half.

“This announcement regarding GTX will exert positive impacts on the ongoing project feasibility analysis for the K-POP venue by the Korea Development institute (KDI) as well,” said Hwang Seon-goo, head of the HallyuWorld Project Team. “It’s clear that the favorable conditions of GTX will boost the HallyuWorld project.”

MOLIT made an announcement on February 28th with regard to Gyeonggi Province’s GTX proposal, giving the green light for work to immediately commence on economically vetted Route A (Ilsan – Samsung). The ministry also stated that it will undertake preliminary feasibility studies as soon as possible on Route B (Songdo – Cheongnyangni) and Route C (Geumjeong – Uijeongbu) after re-planning and supplementation.

“The 12.5 million residents of the province and I enthusiastically welcome the government’s announcement, and we look forward to prompt actions after such a long period of consideration,” said Gyeonggi Governor Kim Moon-soo. “I urge the government to carry forward Routes B and C along with A at the earliest possible date, as GTX is absolutely necessary to create jobs and realize welfare in transportation in the metropolitan areas.”

The Ilsan-Samsung route will be opened in 2022 after this year’s feasibility study and master plan service order. Once completed, it is expected that the travel time from Samsung to Ilsan, which currently takes 83 minutes, will be reduced to 22 minutes.

The HallyuWorld project would see the construction of a culture and tourism complex consisting of a theme park, commercial facilities, multipurpose buildings, hotels and broadcasting media facilities by 2017 on the 994,756㎡ site around Janghang-dong, Goyang City, with an investment of KRW 5.626 trillion by Gyeonggi(and KRW 4.896 trillion of private investment).

Last year, contracts for the HallyuWorld Hotel and SM Tourist Hotel sites were signed in January and April, respectively, and the MVL Hotel Kintex, the biggest hotel in Gyeonggi, was opened in March. It was confirmed in February that the K-POP venue and pop music museum will be constructed in HallyuWorld, and in December the digital broadcasting production support center Bitmaru was completed and opened.

◇ Bitmaru, the digital broadcasting production support center, opened in HallyuWorld last December. ⓒ Gyeonggi G-News Yoo Je-hoon 

ⓒGyeonggi G-News | Chun Kyeong-nam ckn0403@kg21.net 

http://gnews.gg.go.kr/news/news_detail.asp?number=201403101242097055C048&s_code=C052