Yongin Draws 170,000 to Yongin Jungang Market Autumn Festival; Food and Youth Culture Bring "New Energy"

Byeolbit Madang Night Market and Gimnyangjang Festival Held Together, Featuring Performances and Activities
Mayor Lee Sangil: "684 Billion Won Urban Regeneration Project to Move Forward... Revitalize Local Commercial District"

About 170,000 people visited the autumn festival held over three days at Yongin Jungang Market and Gimnyangjang-dong Culture Street in Gyeonggi Province. The festival brought new energy to the old downtown by combining traditional market food with performances by young artists and programs for residents.

Yongin Special City Mayor Lee Sang-il is engaging with residents at the Byeolbit Madang Night Market and Gimnyangjang Festival. Photo provided by Yongin City.

Yongin Special City (Mayor Lee Sang-il) said on Tuesday, October 20, that about 170,000 residents and visitors attended the 8th Byeolbit Madang Night Market and the 2nd Gimnyangjang Festival: Youth Market, held from October 16 to 18 at Yongin Jungang Market and along Culture Street in Gimnyangjang-dong, Cheoin-gu.

The Byeolbit Madang Night Market, hosted by the Yongin Jungang Market Merchants Association, ran from 3 p.m. to 10 p.m. each day for three days. More than 60 teams, including local food vendors, food trucks, and craft beer and traditional liquor sellers, took part, offering a range of dishes such as tteokbokki, jokbal, kebabs, and pho.

Performances of magic, fusion gugak, nanta, youth dance, and invited singers took place throughout the market. The event also featured "I'm a Singer Too," a singing contest for residents, and a handmade goods flea market. A design alley exhibition called "Baeksanghoe," which introduced 100 shops in the market by incorporating ideas from local universities, was also set up.

The Gimnyangjang Festival, held on October 16 and 17 along Culture Street, connected the urban regeneration project with youth culture. Organized by the Jungang-dong Urban Regeneration Field Support Center, it offered free programs such as AI caricatures, instant photo sessions, and succulent-plant workshops. Local university students gave busking performances, while participants in a resident-proposed project ran hands-on programs themselves.

Visitors enjoyed performances and activities on Culture Street before heading to the nearby market to sample food and browse the shops. A merchants association representative said, "The large number of young people and families who came was a great boost for the merchants."

Lee Sang-il, mayor of Yongin, visited the site on the first day of the event. After attending the night market's opening ceremony, he toured the market and met with merchants and residents.

Citizens visit the Byeolbit Madang Night Market in Yongin Special City. Photo courtesy of Yongin City.

Mayor Lee said, "It is especially meaningful that residents, merchants, and local universities joined forces to make the festival even more engaging. We will continue to support efforts to ensure that residents visit Yongin Jungang Market, spend time there, and enjoy its diverse culture and food."

He added, "We will also ensure that the urban regeneration project, which involves an investment of more than 68.4 billion won, proceeds without a hitch. We will do our utmost to help Yongin Jungang Market develop into an even more attractive and competitive traditional market, and to ensure that its success contributes to revitalizing the local commercial district."

The area around Yongin Jungang Market was selected as a site for regional-specialty regeneration in the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport's 2022 urban regeneration project call for proposals. The city is investing a total of 68.4 billion won in phases, including national, provincial, and municipal funds, to improve the market and its surroundings and revitalize the commercial district.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.