42 Opinion
The Green Space Vendetta By William Urbanski
July 2021
BACK TO REALITY I wrote that introduction a few weeks ago when I was still in awe of the sheer boldness of the decision to bulldoze the park in question. Now, I would like to take this opportunity to backpedal on my previous statements because upon careful reflection, I think obliterating virtually the last urban green space in the area might not be such a sound idea for reasons I will attempt to enumerate and explain fully here.
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COMMUNITY
L
et me be the first to congratulate the erudite, brilliant, and overall stunningly wise individual who authorized the decision to destroy Yuan Geunrin Gongwon (유안근린공원, Yuan Neighborhood Park), one of the last public green spaces in Gwangju’s Bongseondong. In the face of public opposition, common sense, and reason, it takes considerable moral courage to stick to the objective of jamming as many buildings as possible into an already congested area. It is also a display of incredible bravery to stand up to the many children, senior citizens, and countless other residents who enjoy the park on a daily basis and to undemocratically expropriate one of the few outdoor gathering places in the area. By having the mental fortitude and valor to do, without asking, what is best for the populous, the individual who allowed this to happen has shown a level of compassion equal only to that of the Dalai Lama. I will personally be contacting the appropriate dignitaries in Sweden to see if the person responsible for this decision can be nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize.
Before we get started, let us make something clear: This is not an article about environmentalism or protecting the wildlife. After all, the park never had any ecosystem to speak of: In fact, whatever “natural habitat” may have existed there at one point in the past was long-since replaced by the dingy parking lot on top of which the park sits. Furthermore, the entirely of Bongseon-dong is essentially a concrete jungle that, besides a few strategically placed trees, is the antithesis of a natural environment. So, the value of the park certainly does not lie in its natural
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biodiversity but as an open, public gathering space where people can congregate, sit, talk, or just simply enjoy the grass and trees. WHAT IS THE VALUE OF A PARK? As you have no doubt heard, property is a hot commodity in Gwangju, and in particular Bongseon-dong, where a run-of-the-mill and cookie-cutter condo runs north of half a million bucks. One of the main reasons for this is that Bongseon-dong is a popular area when it comes to education, and the main street is simply riddled with every conceivable sort of academy. For any family with children, this makes the area a pretty attractive place to live since the kids will have convenient access to the myriad education facilities (and, incidentally, students who live in Bongseon-dong have the reputation of being quite smart). So, the “feedback loop” looks something like this: There are lots of academies, so many people move there, which causes more academies to open up, causing more people to move there. This sounds all well and good, but one of the major problems this creates is that there is little to virtually nothing to do in the area that does not involve shelling out money since every square meter of useable land is immediately scooped up by those wishing to install some sort of business. This brings us back to the park in question. In this desert of traffic, sidewalks, cafes, and billboards, the park is a refuge. While not extremely fancy or particularly large, it is well laid out, accessible to all, has lots of green grass and, to put it mildly, is a very popular place for the denizens of the area to gather, play, and relax. The park borders the main street, but has enough trees and bushes to block out the noise from the traffic, which is simply bonkers. Many times, I have walked through the park, even at night, and been surprised by how many people were there exercising. Besides this park, there are no other large, open spaces in the area, so it was very surprising that the park was chosen as a new location for a building that will eat up roughly twenty five percent of its area. The new building also cuts
2021-06-24 �� 10:19:59
