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Children Imagination Park through Residents’ Participation
Parks Development Division, Seoul Metropolitan Government

The Problem

- Outdated children’s parks (most of which were built in the 1980s and 1990s) -
There are a total of 1,082 children’s parks in Seoul. They account for 49.5% of the parks in the city. Most of them are small-sized playgrounds. Built in the 1980s and 1990s amid rapid urban development of the city, most of them are now dilapidated. Seesaws, slides and swings are about all there are and not many children like to play there.

- Need to build new children’s parks -
The mass media, NGOs and local residents pointed out the problem of safety in children’s parks in that they are used as a place where teenagers commit misconduct like smoking or some homeless people spend the night. There was a need to provide spaces where children could play safely, stretching their imaginations fully. Such spaces were really important for urban children who naturally found it hard to access nature. Many of them had to go to private teaching institutes after school and were engrossed in playing computer games.

- Need for financial support from the City of Seoul for children’s parks -
Children’s parks are under the control of district offices, which could not afford the financial means to attempt to renovate the parks. Thus, the City of Seoul decided to help. With the cooperation of district offices, local residents, experts, the Urban Park Commission, City Council, and civic organizations, the City of Seoul set up a plan to build Sangsang (meaning imaginativeness) children’s parks (“Children imagination Park”) with the aim of enhancing the gratification among children, their parents and senior citizens.

Solution and Key Benefits

 What is the initiative about? (the solution)
The City of Seoul set up the Children Imagination Park Plan to renovate 300 children’s parks, which are seriously outdated, in less-privileged areas, by 2010. The renovation work for 100 parks was completed in December 2009.

- 94% of local residents express satisfaction -
The renovation work focused on stimulating children’s imagination and inclusion of a rest place for local residents, particularly senior citizens. In a survey of 1,920 local residents in the 100 areas where the renovation work was completed, 94% of the respondents expressed satisfaction. The establishment of children imagination parks provided venue where children can play and explore their imagination. In addition, the addition of a new play ground added vitality to the community.

- Benchmarked as a model for renovation of similar parks nationwide -
The businesses carrying out the renovation work have seen an increase in the demand for similar work. As a result, the market for playground facility has expanded and the related industry was boosted. The industry saw its skills improve based on the experience accumulated while carrying out renovation. Witnessing the success of Seoul City’s initiative, other local governments with similar needs decided to benchmark the children imagination parks which were achieved with the participation of local residents.

Actors and Stakeholders

 Who proposed the solution, who implemented it and who were the stakeholders?
- The project was first proposed by diverse members of the community -
At first, the issue of the outdated parks was raised by the media and local residents. However, the project was proposed by diverse members of the community and launched by Seoul City under the commitment to the safety of children and the upgraded city where people can lead a happy life. In this regard, Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon and Seoul City officials, Mr. Ha Ji-won, a member of the Seoul City Council, and a group of experts have demonstrated their strong will and dedication.

- Collection of the opinions of people from diverse walks of life -
Concerning the renovation work, the City of Seoul collected ideas from a total of 182 people, including college students. For the establishment of the plan, the City of Seoul held sessions to listen to the opinions of a total of 21,896 local residents, including children, in more than 300 locations. At the meetings, 282 designers, 234 experts - including the members of the Urban Park Commission - those specialized in contract work supervision (60) and a group of advisors concerning contracting work (138) and 75 district officials presented their opinions, and findings and suggestions from the meetings directly contributed to the strategic planning.

- Volunteers help maintain the parks in good shape -
For the 100 Children Imagination Parks whose renovation work has been completed, a total of 3,000 volunteers are acting as caretakers to keep them in good shape.

(a) Strategies

 Describe how and when the initiative was implemented by answering these questions
 a.      What were the strategies used to implement the initiative? In no more than 500 words, provide a summary of the main objectives and strategies of the initiative, how they were established and by whom.
- Campaigns to make parks loved by local residents and rejuvenate local communities -
In connection with the need for renovation of neighborhood children’s parks, the City of Seoul launched a system of cooperation under the objective of making parks loved by local residents and rejuvenating local communities, keeping in mind that it is important to have local residents take part in the project.

- Each of the renovated 300 parks has its own theme like a miniature Disneyland -
The parks were redesigned to reflect their unique localities as well as to incorporate themes associated with, say, energy, climate, nature, the universe, fairy tales and the country’s folk plays so that they might look like a miniature Disneyland.

- Formation of the parks in a way that satisfies every age group -
The City of Seoul set up a master plan for the renovation in a way that could satisfy all age groups of people. For this requirement, it held sessions designed to listen to the opinions of local residents, including children, and design workshops.

- Internet café established for the project to encourage positive participation by local residents -
The City of Seoul opened an Internet café dedicated to this project in an effort to encourage the participation of local residents and provided the materials concerning the plan. The City opened a separate webpage where local residents post or submit their opinions and comments and held various events to facilitate communications among stakeholders , including photo contests associated with the use of the parks. In addition, the City of Seoul carried out on/offline promotion to encourage local residents’ active participation.

(b) Implementation

 b.      What were the key development and implementation steps and the chronology? No more than 500 words
- Development of the project -
First of all, the overall picture of the plan was drawn in terms of project directions, after the City of Seoul selected useful ideas, the design, and contracting work in an open bid. The details are as follows:

The City of Seoul established the overall plan for Children Imagination Parks in March 2008 after five months of preparations. Then, it encouraged local residents, including college students, to submit their opinions on the types of parks they would like in an open-competitions basis in March and April 2008. The drafting of plans for each park followed in April-May 2008. The revised first draft was made after checking the opinions of elementary school students and holding a panel discussion session (June-July 2008). Design workshops were held to listen to the opinions of local residents, including children. Their opinions were reflected in the revised second draft (August-September 2008). Expert advisory sessions followed (September-November 2008). A detailed review was made on the final draft that reflected experts’ opinions (November-December 2008). The process of the selection of contractors and work implementation was supervised by a volunteer group of local residents (January-May 2009). After renovation was completed, the City of Seoul carried out surveys concerning the level of satisfaction felt by local residents and a photo contest (May – September 2009). Problems pointed out through such sessions were reflected in the work for the remaining 200 parks (carried out from September 2009).

(c) Overcoming Obstacles

 c.      What were the main obstacles encountered? How were they overcome? No more than 500 words
- Settling of residents’ diverse interests through their participation and cooperation during the process -
The renovation work for Children Imagination Parks was carried out with the participation of diverse members of local communities. The City of Seoul continued to interact with local residents throughout the process, i.e., from the problems raised about rundown parks until the completion of the work. Different age groups had different opinions about what the new children’s parks should be like. A group of people asked for the construction of amusement facilities, whereas others were opposed to it saying that such facilities would make lots of noise. A group of people objected to the use of sand in the playground, while experts said that playing in sand helps with children’s social-emotional development. The difference in their opinions was gradually narrowed at a series of meetings and workshops.. Consideration was also given to the users of wheelchairs and baby strollers by having wheelchair ramps installed in the parks.

(d) Use of Resources

 d.      What resources were used for the initiative and what were its key benefits? In no more than 500 words, specify what were the financial, technical and human resources’ costs associated with this initiative. Describe how resources were mobilized
- Matching fund was used for the project -
The expense was met with a matching fund through the agreement between the City of Seoul and the 25 autonomous district offices in the city. More money was paid to district offices that were financially less secure than others.

- A total of 22,792 people took part -
A consortium of landscaping experts and designers designed the renovated parks and developed creative play facilities. A total of 22,792 people, including experts and public officials, took part in the entire process.

- The Construction Consulting Group offers advisory services -
The City of Seoul operated a corps of onsite work advisors comprised of designers, contractors, supervisors, relevant experts and city officials, the first of its kind adopted in the country, for the purpose of precision work and to avoid complaints from local residents. The Children Imagination Parks guidelines were made with the feedback concerning the problems encountered during the renovation of the first 100 parks and were used for the work of the remaining 200 parks.

Sustainability and Transferability

  Is the initiative sustainable and transferable?
- The success of the initiative spreads across Seoul -
Children Imagination Parks represented a city effort from a new financial, social and institutional perspective and became the focus of attention. Many local governments came to benchmark it for similar projects of their own. Children Imagination Parks were helped by a group of experts, who proposed the adoption of a playground space for infants and solar-powered play facilities that can generate energy for themselves. The parks became an innovative success story that met the demands of various age groups as well as different social groups and ethnic groups. . After the completion of the work for the first 100 parks, the mass media and local residents spoke highly of them. Thus, the City of Seoul plans to extend this program to more dilapidated parks, beyond 2010.

- Regarded as a benchmark by 16 local governments -
After the success story of Children Imagination Parks in Seoul spread to the rest of the country, 16 other local governments showed an interest in how the work was promoted, and their representatives, including Ulsan City Councilors, came up to Seoul and inspected the sites. In Ansan, mayoral candidates promised to review the formation of parks as a campaign pledge apparently under the influence of the renovated parks in Seoul.

It is expected that many of the 7,217 neighborhood children’s parks nationwide will follow in Seoul’s footsteps. It appears that many newly-built apartment complexes may feature similar parks within them.

Lessons Learned

 What are the impact of your initiative and the lessons learned?
- Difficulties in project promotion solved through the participation of local residents -
The project showed that it was possible to win the heart of local residents if every effort was made to have their opinions reflected, and to settle any problems with them in consultations, during the intial momentum of the project.

The City of Seoul won the trust of local residents by encouraging them to take part in the process of renovating the parks. With it, other problems were solved with relative ease. The City of Seoul solved the matter of financial expenditure for the work, which was one of the most difficult problems of the matter, through the formation of matching funds participated in by the district offices. The Advisory Commission comprised of expert help that guided the City of Seoul through the technical problems faced in the production and installation of the creative play facilities.

A group of Seoul City officials jointly carried out the relevant research for the project and won the Creativity Award from the Seoul Metropolitan Government in 2008. They felt a sense of achievement from the project and witnessed, as a result of having local residents take part and operating in a phased feedback system, the project became the focus of attention and was acclaimed as a benchmark. Most of all, the valuable lesson was that trust building and cooperation with the private sector is the most important factor for the success of a project.

Contact Information

Institution Name:   Parks Development Division, Seoul Metropolitan Government
Institution Type:   Government Department  
Contact Person:   Sanggyu Chang
Title:   Deputy Director  
Telephone/ Fax:   82-2-2115-7575
Institution's / Project's Website:   82-2-2115-7639
E-mail:   sanggyu@seoul.go.kr  
Address:   11-1, Munhagujip-gil
Postal Code:   100-250
City:   Jung-gu
State/Province:   Seoul Metropolitan City
Country:  

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