Anyang mayor commits to make city young

Choi Dae-ho, the mayor of Anyang, Gyeonggi Province, has specific ideas for the future of the city.

“I aim to continue to promote projects to create a city that will prosper for over 100 years,” Choi proclaims. The agenda pursued by Choi focuses on more initiatives for the city's young people.

Choi said over his term he hopes to build a city that is women-friendly and safer for children to grow up in.

“Anyang is first in the country to increase rewards to couples that have children by twofold,” he said.

Anyang pays couples 2 million won ($1,500) for their first child, 4 million won for the second child and 10 million won for a third. The city is also adding more day care facilities as well as children’s libraries and learning centers.

To attract young people, Anyang has set up a fund to support young people to start their own businesses. The fund provides young entrepreneurs with loans at lower interest rates and real estate subsidies.

Anyang started offering scholarship opportunities and financial aid to students in 2011 through a city-run fund. Over the last 12 years, a total of 5.9 billion won in scholarships has been awarded to around 9,000 students. The fund holds homecoming events where scholarship awardees and donors can meet and network.

Anyang is home to many winter sports athletes, including short track speedskaters Hwang Dae-heon and Seo Hwi-min and figure skater Kim Yu-jae. The three skaters are alumni of Anyang’s youth talent foundation.

The key part of Choi’s plans to improve Anyang involves technology.

“These (plans) would include building an AI big data analysis platform to create safer school zones,” he said. He added he would attract more companies to base their headquarters in the city.

Last year, Anyang secured a total of 3.7 billion won in financial incentives by winning 66 awards and accepting 104 applications.

Choi said he is seeking to increase civic participation in the city’s administrations over his term.

“We have created citizen participation committee where people of Anyang offer their views and opinions about the future of our city, and what kind of policies could better assist their day-to-day lives,” he said. “We are trying to expand opportunities for citizens to participate in the city administrations.”

Improving the commute to and from Seoul is one major project Choi is undertaking as mayor.

Anyang, just south of Seoul, is constructing more railways to better connect the city to the capital.

“Anyang will become the city with the largest railway networks in the southern part of the metropolitan area,” he said.

Choi has presented the plan to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport for approval. Jointly with the railway construction plan, the pilot project for rebuilding the city’s roads to be suited for autonomous driving is also underway, he added.

Choi also plans to make Anyang greener. The city has expanded support for drivers to switch to environmentally friendly cars.

He said that the city, which is celebrating 50 years since attaining city status, will invest 1.69 trillion won in this year’s budget and focus its administrative capabilities to further developments of the city.

Several events marking the 50th anniversary of Anyang as a city are planned this year, including an exhibition of its history.

While pursuing new projects, Choi says his chief concern is financial transparency. For the past three consecutive years, Anyang has received the highest grade in the yearly anti-corruption evaluation -- meaning it was the least-corrupt city.

“I believe that as a public servant, working with the highest degree of ethics and integrity is the most important thing,” he said.

Park Joung-kyu (fob140@heraldcorp.com)