"It’s been less than a year since construction, and there are leaks and frozen pipes..." Park Young-hoon, Bupyeong District Councilor, criticizes poor management of ‘Haha Village’

It has been revealed that ‘Haha Village’, a newly constructed public facility in Bupyeong District, Incheon, is suffering from serious defects such as leaks and frozen pipes just over a year after its completion. There are concerns that residents' inconveniences are increasing due to the district office's lukewarm response.

Park Young-hoon, a councilor from the Democratic Party of Korea representing Bupyeong 3, Sangok 3, 4, and Sipjeong 1, 2, criticized the poor management of public facilities and the conflicts within the redevelopment area during the report on the Urban Maintenance and Urban Regeneration Departments at the 274th temporary session held on the 3rd.

Councilor Park specifically targeted the delay in repairs for ‘Haha Village’. He strongly criticized, saying, “Is it reasonable that a building completed just a year ago has leaks in the summer and the plumbing freezes in the winter, causing the gym shower facilities to be shut down?”

He particularly pointed out that responsible officials, including department heads, have never properly met with the site representatives, stating, “The department is leaving it to them to manage on their own,” and warned, “If the leak issue is not fundamentally resolved before summer, secondary and tertiary damages are inevitable.”

Concerns about redevelopment issues also followed. Councilor Park checked the status of redevelopment in the western area of Bupyeong-dong and mentioned the potential damage in areas where local housing cooperatives (joint housing) and redevelopment are mixed.

He stated, “If the redevelopment consent is met without fulfilling the requirements for joint housing, existing joint housing members will bear the civil damages,” and urged, “The district must devise measures to minimize the damage to our local residents beyond administrative procedures.”

Councilor Park also called for policy changes regarding the post-management system after the urban regeneration project ends. He pointed out, “Currently, the ordinance only supports utility bills for three years and leaves the rest to residents' self-sufficiency,” and added, “It is unreasonable for residents without specialized knowledge to manage facilities like the complex that includes jobs for the elderly and children’s dream centers.”

He continued, “Since the village management social cooperative has received approval from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, Bupyeong District should take the lead in amending the ordinance to establish a professional post-management support plan.”

In response, a district official stated, “We will review efficient support measures for community facilities used by residents through continuous repairs and consultations with relevant departments.”