Chapter 396 |
The Saemangeum Development Project.
It was the largest land reclamation project since Dangun (the legendary founder of Korea), involving damming the estuaries of the Mangyeong and Dongjin Rivers in Jeollabuk-do with a seawall and then filling in the interior.
Construction first began in 1991. Over the following 19 years, nearly 3 trillion won was invested to build the world's longest seawall, measuring 33.9 kilometers.
In the meantime, presidents changed, ruling parties changed, and construction was halted several times due to lawsuits over fishermen's livelihoods, environmental destruction, and other issues. However, the seawall was finally completed in 2010.
An area over 140 times the size of Yeouido was newly created, increasing South Korea's land area by 0.4 percent. And this land became 100% government-owned.
This was recorded as the world's largest reclamation project, surpassing even those outside Korea.
The problems began from then on. Originally, the primary goal of the Saemangeum project was to secure agricultural land. However, by the time the seawall was nearing completion, there was a rice surplus, and the situation required reducing even existing farmland.
Consequently, the government shifted the project's direction towards new city development.
For farmland, all that was needed was to drain the seawater and then plant rice seedlings. However, a new city involved countless tasks, from preparing the reclaimed land to constructing various infrastructure.
Local residents, once filled with dreams of development, sighed as they looked at the dusty, empty plains.
Thus, Saemangeum degenerated into a white elephant and was gradually fading from people's minds.
***
When I first saw this vision, I thought:
Why Saemangeum?
Unless the vision was misleading me, there had to be a valid reason for it to be Saemangeum.
The answer I arrived at after much thought was the Saemangeum new city. If a cutting-edge city of finance and industry surpassing Seoul could be created, wouldn't that be reason enough to move?
In typical cases, cities form naturally. However, there are plenty of cities planned and built under government leadership.
Korea, too, has developed new cities several times: Bundang, Ilsan, Pyeongchon, Sanbon, Pangyo, Gwanggyo, Dongtan, Wirye, and so on.
The common characteristic of these new cities is that they are satellite cities connected to existing metropolises. Creating a self-sustaining new city is not as easy as it sounds.
Saemangeum's initial concept was to create an agricultural food production base. However, this later changed to reducing farmland to create an urban-rural complex city, and now it has been designated an economic cooperation special zone.
According to the ambitious plan put forth by the current government, they intend to make it a central city for global free trade. It wasn't just this administration; successive governments had attached all sorts of grand labels: Jeonbuk's advanced city, the center of the West Coast era, Northeast Asia's hub city, Asia's Dubai, an international financial city, and so on.
I said to Taekgyu.
“Location is paramount for a city. Other things can be changed with money, but location cannot.”
A city does not exist in isolation. For people to come and go, transportation must be good, and for businesses to establish themselves, logistics must be good.
Fortunately, Saemangeum’s location, while not the absolute best, is suitable.
Being reclaimed land, it naturally borders the sea, and the entire country is within a two-hour radius. It’s connected to the Seoul metropolitan area by highway, and extending high-speed rail is also possible.
The Saemangeum International Airport and Saemangeum Port have already begun construction, though progress is sluggish due to budget issues.
Gunsan Port is nearby, or goods can be trucked to Busan Port. Anyway, once autonomous electric trucks are released, land logistics costs won't be a major issue.
Taekgyu tilted his head.
“Aren’t there many other places with locations similar to Saemangeum? There must be quite a few abroad too.”
“The biggest difference is that Saemangeum is 100% central government land, with no private property.”
It’s safe to say there’s no other place in the world where the central government owns a site of this size. This is truly an enormous advantage.
“But if we announce Saemangeum development, won’t environmental groups oppose it? Greenpeace even came and protested before, didn’t they?”
“Ah! You don’t need to worry about that.”
“Why not?”
“I looked into it, and apparently, it's already been so thoroughly destroyed that there's no environment left to destroy.”
“……”
Land reclamation inevitably destroys the environment. But Saemangeum’s reclamation is already complete, and reversing it is impossible.
That’s why even environmental groups that once vehemently opposed the mere mention of Saemangeum are now quiet.
What remains is how to utilize that land.
The Saemangeum new city plan wasn't something I suddenly came up with; the government had been pursuing it for a long time. It just wasn't going well.
The reason the plan is stalled is because it’s facing difficulties from the very first step: attracting businesses.
If a company could build a large-scale factory on cheap land with no resident opposition, there would be no reason for them to refuse.
The problem is that even if they build a factory, it’s hard to find people to work there.
It might be different for smokestack industries requiring simple labor, but advanced industries need highly educated talent. That's why large corporations like Seosung, SSK, and CL build semiconductor, battery, and bio-factories in the Seoul metropolitan area. However, the metropolitan area is already saturated and tied up by various regulations. Also, plans often fall through due to land acquisition issues and resident opposition.
Ultimately, the reason companies don't go to Saemangeum is because most of the talent is concentrated in Seoul and its surrounding areas.
“Many people want to live in Seoul. So why do they want to live in Seoul? Do they sleep better if they lie down in Seoul? Does food taste better if they eat in Seoul?”
“Isn’t it because it’s convenient to live there?”
“Correct.”
Seoul has all the infrastructure necessary for life. You can enjoy all conveniences like work, education, healthcare, shopping, and culture. If you live in Seoul, you rarely need to leave Seoul except for travel.
People flock to where people are. It becomes a city where everyone wants to live because everyone else is living there.
Then the conclusion is simple.
We just need to create a city where people want to live.
But the method is not simple.
How on earth do you create a city people want to live in?
I took out a whiteboard.
“What do people need to live?”
“They need a house.”
“Correct.”
I wrote ‘Apartments’ on the whiteboard.
“What next?”
“They need companies too.”
I wrote ‘Businesses’ next to ‘Apartments.’
A city without commercial facilities degenerates into a bedtown. People only sleep there and commute elsewhere for work. Therefore, to avoid becoming a bedtown, businesses must come.
But people can’t live just by sleeping and working.
“To raise kids, you need kindergartens and schools. For shopping, you need department stores, marts, and shopping centers. And to enjoy cultural life, you need cinemas, art galleries, and performance halls.”
“And for weekend fun, you need a theme park.”
“Theme parks are important. Should it be Disneyland or Universal Studios?”
At my question, Taekgyu thought for a moment and then answered.
“Can’t we have both?”
“You’re a genius.”
Orlando is the only place where Disneyland and Universal Studios are gathered in one location. But since Saemangeum has land to spare, there’s no rule saying we can’t have both.
“We also need good hotels and resorts.”
“Right.”
“Something like what we saw in Singapore back then.”
“Marina Bay Sands?”
The first image that comes to mind when thinking of Singapore is the three massive buildings with a long ship perched on top. Inside that ship is an infinity pool, making it a famous spot for proof shots (It is a Korean term for photos taken to prove you were somewhere or did something, often for social media).
That place is Marina Bay Sands.
As the building’s name suggests, it was built by the Sands Group, a famous American casino, resort, and hotel group that operates hotels and casinos in places like Las Vegas, Macau, and around the world.
“To attract foreign tourists, it would be good to have a foreigner-only casino too.”
Looking at everything written down, it was more than just one or two things. Could we really attract all of this?
The plans the government or I come up with are pretty much the same. The difference, if any, would be the ability to execute them.
“Let’s go take a look.”
“Where?”
I said, as if it were obvious.
“Saemangeum. Seeing it with our own eyes would be the most certain, wouldn’t it?”
***
If I were to go to Saemangeum, rumors would likely spread like wildfire before any work even began. So, we decided to go secretly, just among ourselves.
The car sped along the straight Seohaean Expressway. Although I was in the driver’s seat, the autonomous driving system was handling everything, so I didn’t really need to do anything.
“Aren’t you going to tell me why we’re going?”
“I’ll tell you later.”
Ellie was beside me, and in the back seat were Taekgyu and Yuri.
I had planned for just the two of us to go, but somehow, we ended up going together.
The reason was that Ellie, who had planned to go shopping with Yuri today, decided to come along. Yuri naturally tagged along too.
I said to Ellie.
“Are you sure you don’t mind not going shopping?”
“I didn’t have anything to buy anyway. I think going to see the sea will be more fun. We can have raw fish later too.”
Yuri also said.
“That’s right. I was just planning to window-shop at the department store anyway.”
“……”
Neither of them had anything to buy, so why did they plan to go shopping?
I was curious, but I felt like I’d be treated like a fool if I asked, so I decided not to.
Yuri, with her long blonde hair tied in a ponytail and wearing jeans and a t-shirt, looked every bit like a college student. Ellie wore a white and blue striped dress and sandals. Even without heavy makeup, she exuded a model-like aura.
“Unni, you look so pretty today.”
“Thank you. But in my eyes, Yuri is much prettier.”
It was nice to see them complimenting each other's beauty. If the two of them had gone shopping together, everyone in the department store would have stared.
Following Taekgyu’s suggestion, I briefly stopped at a rest area.
Ellie and I, being well-known faces, didn’t get out of the car. Instead, Taekgyu and Yuri shopped for plenty of snacks.
“Want a hot dog?”
“No, thanks.”
“How about sotteok (sausage and rice cake skewers)?”
“I don’t want any.”
Ellie asked.
“What’s ‘sotteok’?”
“It’s sausage and rice cakes eaten together.”
“I’ll try some.”
Ellie took a few bites and then offered the skewer to me.
“It’s delicious, Jinhoo. You try some too.”
I pretended to give in and took a bite. It tasted good, so I decided to eat it too.
Being like this felt like we were all on a group picnic.
After passing the rest area and driving for another two hours, the Saemangeum seawall finally came into view. The tens of kilometers of seawall stretching across the sea were truly a magnificent sight.
It was almost unbelievable that such a structure had been built on the sea. However, it didn’t take long for that impression to shatter.
Once inside the Saemangeum reclaimed land, we pulled over to the side of the road and got out.
An endless expanse of sand stretched out before us. Dust flew up with every gust of wind, making it difficult to even open our eyes.
What is this, a yellow dust storm?
Taekgyu said, as if impressed.
“Wow! So Korea has deserts too.”
Seeing it in person, I could understand why people complained that taxpayer money had been used to build a desert.
“Isn’t it worse than you thought?”
I nodded.
“It’s much worse.”
I had no idea where or how to even begin.
I recalled the sight of Silicon Valley. Even there, in a place tragically ruined by an earthquake, a new city was being built.
If capital were invested, building a city here would also be entirely possible.
“Dubai built skyscrapers and a cutting-edge city in an empty desert. Now it’s a world-class tourist destination, attracting over 15 million tourists annually. Compared to Dubai, Saemangeum is much more realistic.”
Taekgyu said.
“Isn’t that all thanks to oil money?”
“Well…”
Dubai itself doesn't produce oil, but it's true that oil money poured in for its development.
For reference, when the financial crisis hit midway, Dubai ended up having to ask for help from Abu Dhabi, which can be considered its central government. The Burj Dubai, a symbol of Dubai's new city, was also handed over to Abu Dhabi capital and renamed Burj Khalifa.
“It’s not like our money is any less than oil money.”
“That’s true.”
Ellie and Yuri looked clueless during our conversation.
“What are you guys talking about right now?”
Since they had come this far with us, I couldn’t just not tell them. Besides, it was something the whole world would find out about soon enough.
“It’s still a secret, so for now, just keep it between yourselves.”
Yuri nodded vigorously.
“Of course. I won’t tell Dad or Uncle either.”
I told them frankly.
“I’m thinking of building a new city here.”
As expected, both of them looked bewildered.
Just then, a strong wind blew, scattering dust in all directions.