Chungbuk’s Cheongju City is set to transform the eastern urban corridor—stretching from Myeongam Amusement Park through Cheongju Land to the Sanseong Old Trail—into a premier family-friendly rest and leisure destination.

On the 3rd, Cheongju City announced plans to build a 1.06-kilometer monorail connecting the Cheongju Land Children's Hall to the Myeongam Mineral Spring to improve accessibility in the eastern urban area.

The city plans to incorporate a media façade tunnel along sections of the monorail route to serve as a key tourism attraction. Detailed route and facility planning will be finalized by 2030, with a total project budget of approximately 23.5 billion won.

Additionally, in 2027, the city will pilot a 2.3-kilometer autonomous shuttle bus route connecting Myeongam Amusement Park, the National Museum of Cheongju, Cheongju Zoo, and Myeongam Mineral Spring.

Myeongam Amusement Park, the starting point of the eastern urban zone, will be revitalized into a complex cultural space by repurposing existing facilities. The Myeongam Observation Tower, which had been abandoned for years, is currently undergoing remodeling. With an investment of around 23.5 billion won, Cheongju City aims to transform the tower into a family rest area, pop-up store hub, and complex gaming center by 2028.

Around the Myeongam Reservoir area, a Build-Transfer-Operate (BTO) private investment project is also underway to introduce a Ferris wheel, a musical fountain, and moon boats. Recently approved for project suitability by the Ministry of Economy and Finance’s Private Investment Project Review Committee, the city expects to receive formal proposals early next year.

The Cheongju Land and Children's Hall area will be reinvented as an integrated leisure space. Cheongju Land’s Exhibition Hall 1 will be converted into a public indoor playground featuring age-appropriate facilities, backed by an 11.3 billion won investment and slated for a May 2027 opening. Outdoors, a forest playground utilizing the natural terrain will be built alongside the "Cheongju Children’s National Sports Center," which will feature a multi-purpose gym and an indoor water park, targeting completion by 2028.

Furthermore, eco-friendly healing spaces are being developed. A project to restore the long-unused Myeongam Mineral Spring into an ecological park is scheduled for completion this December.

Cheongju Mayor Lee Jang-seop stated, "The core of this initiative is to harmonize and interconnect the natural, cultural, and recreational assets of each space from Myeongam Amusement Park to the Sanseong Old Trail. We will proceed step-by-step to enhance public accessibility so that citizens and families can easily visit and stay longer in a convenient downtown setting."

[ⓒ Global Economic Times. 무단전재-재배포 금지]