Gangseo District Opens Integrated Office in Magok; Mayor Jin Gyohun: "Momentum for Progress"

District office, public health center and district council brought together under one roof
Library and kids' cafe also set to open

Seoul's Gangseo District has ended the era of its Hwagok-dong office and begun operations at its new integrated district office in Magok-dong (135 Gonghang-daero). This comes 49 years after the district office opened in 1977. Administrative functions that had been scattered among the main building, annexes, public health center and district council have been brought together on one site.

Jin Gyohoon, head of Gangseo-gu, explains the district’s history at the Gangseo History and Culture Hall on the first floor of the new integrated building on the 3rd. Provided by Gangseo-gu.

Gangseo District announced on November 4 that departments moved in stages throughout October, and that operations at the integrated office began after the district council completed its move late last month. The move comes six years and two months after the district finalized the basic construction plan in August 2020.

The integrated office complex consists of four buildings on a 20,244-square-meter site: the district office's main building, a public health center, the district council and an annex. The total floor area is 59,147 square meters. The district initially estimated the total project cost at KRW 243.1 billion.

At a press briefing held at the new office on November 3, Gangseo District Mayor Jin Gyohun said, "The move to the integrated office is more than a relocation; it is an opportunity to create momentum for Gangseo District's progress. Bringing scattered administrative functions together in one place will significantly improve work efficiency, and it is meaningful that we can provide better administrative services in a convenient and pleasant office."

Until now, Gangseo District Office's main building, annexes in Hwagok-dong and Gayang-dong, district council and public health center were located separately, reducing work efficiency and requiring residents to travel between multiple locations depending on the service they needed.

The new office is about 200 meters from Exit 1 of Magok Station on Subway Line 5, and is also close to Magongnaru Station, served by Line 9 and the Airport Railroad. It has 405 parking spaces.

Some areas of the office will be open to residents. Magok Open Library, an AI-focused library located on the first basement and first above-ground floors, will open on November 14. Next month, the Seoul-style Kids Cafe, Gangseo District Office branch, will open on the third floor of the annex.

Mayor Jin said, "Residents ask most often when the library will open," adding, "It will become the space residents visit most often in the new office." The multipurpose hall on the second basement floor will also operate as a public wedding venue on weekends.

The first-floor lobby houses the Gangseo History and Culture Center (Time Lounge), which displays records and signboards dating from the opening of Gangseo District Office in 1977, as well as video recreations of Gyeomjae Jeong Seon's "Eight Scenic Views of Yangcheon." Mayor Jin proposed adding the historical and cultural space, which was not included in the original design. He named it as the space in the new office to which he feels most attached.

Mayor Jin said, "Recognizing history, remembering the past and recording it are all deeply meaningful." A donors' wall of honor and a kiosk for small donations have also been installed in the lobby.

Main building of the integrated office complex. Courtesy of Gangseo-gu.

The former Hwagok-dong office site (980-16 Hwagok-dong) will initially be used as a public parking lot. The measure is intended to ease parking shortages in the nearby restaurant district and revitalize local businesses. In the long term, the district plans to build a cultural complex on the site, with four underground floors and nine above-ground floors. It will include a performance hall with about 1,000 seats, a library, sports facilities and commercial space.

Mayor Jin said, "Rather than simply selling the former office site, we will turn it into a cultural and leisure space for residents, revitalize nearby businesses and ensure balanced development with the old downtown area."

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