Reasons for Proposal
Industrial areas are special-purpose areas designated to provide greater convenience and benefit for industries such as the manufacturing industry, etc., and have usually been situated in subcenters within cities and played a central role in the city’s growth and employment base, but unlike industrial complexes, industrial areas have been managed from a special-purpose area perspective without policy support, such that poor working conditions according to the area have weakened industrial competitiveness, and sites with mixed residential and industrial uses have resulted in undermining of industrial space and worsening the urban environment, such that problems in management of spatial planning are becoming more serious.
Unfavorable site conditions of such areas such as aging buildings, land characteristics of confined plots, lack of infrastructure, support facilities, and amenities, etc., have meant that youth employment and active private sector re-investment have not taken place, and individual spot-by-spot development projects in industrial areas have failed to take comprehensive account of the industrial characteristics of such areas, such that they have been limited in supporting the re-organization of industrial structures and industrial vitalization in keeping with changing times.
It has been difficult to implement projects consisting of systematic management, financial aid, and prompt development of strategic points according to conditions of each type of industrial area in cities using existing systems such as those provided in the National Land Planning and Utilization Act, Urban Development Act, etc., such that it has been difficult to ensure competitiveness of traditional industrial areas.
Recently, countries such as the United States, Germany, France, and China are trying to pre-emptively respond to the Fourth Industrial Revolution Age by aiming to create an eco-system for innovation in the manufacturing industry, grow small and medium-sized manufacturing businesses, have highly-efficient and intelligent factories and convenient and safe working environment, etc., through modifying innovation policies to enable conversion of manufacturing industries into digital industries (Industry 4.0), and concentrating on formulating various strategies to strengthen competitiveness of manufacturing industries in the future.
The Republic of Korea held a ceremony for proclamation of the Vision for Renaissance in Manufacturing (June 19, 2019), and expressed that instead of adopting a strategy of being a “fast follower” of advanced countries, it will adopt an “innovation leading” strategy in keeping with major structural changes such as the Fourth Industrial Revolution, strengthening environmental regulations, re-organization of the international trade order, etc., with a goal of becoming one of the four major manufacturing countries in the world.
In such a period, there is an urgent need to enable industrial areas to take sufficient advantage of their location within cities to draw in a workforce required in the Fourth Industrial Revolution Age, with the result that such areas are transformed into core areas leading industrial area innovation, through providing systematic and pre-emptive management of industrial areas and a new integrated urban management framework.
Therefore, this proposal aims to accomplish systematic management and vitalization of industrial areas by having the State establish a basic national framework and provide strategies for managing urban spaces so that local industrial characteristics can be reflected, by having local governments establish systematic basic plans according to the type of industrial area, and by enabling not just the public sector but also the private sector, to designate industrial areas for modification such as industrial innovation areas, for efficient and prompt project implementation, through which the quality of urban environment in industrial areas is improved, and vitalization points in such areas with mixed industrial, commercial, residential, cultural, etc., functions are created, with the result that comprehensive legal grounds for strengthening urban competitiveness are provided.
Also, this proposal aims to enable such areas to become frontline bases for future industries by expanding support functions within urban areas such as providing a legal basis for pilot projects of public institutions for the realization of regional vitalization points and their expansion, establishing a comprehensive database regarding industrial areas, and establishing an organization for supporting management of industrial areas.
Moreover, this proposal aims to enable industrial area modification projects to be smoothly implemented by streamlining procedures required in designation of basic industrial area plans or industrial area modification districts, etc., as well as procedures required in the establishment of modification project implementation plans, and by providing funds and financial aid, etc., so that the effects of vitalization of urban industries and job creation are maximized.
Details
A. Purpose (Article 1)
The purpose of this Act is to prescribe matters necessary in the establishment and implementation, etc., of plans for systematic management and vitalization of urban industrial areas in order to improve competitiveness of urban areas and urban environment, thereby improving standard of living for the public and contributing to national economic development.
B. Responsibilities of the State and Local Governments (Article 3)
The State shall establish policies for systematic management and vitalization of industrial areas, and local governments shall ensure that necessary budgets and support organizations are in place for management, etc., of industrial areas, in order to enable efficient project implementation and support of resident businesses.
C. Establishment of Basic National Industrial Area Plan (Article 4)
The Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport shall establish a basic national industrial area plan every ten (10) years for management and vitalization of industrial areas, and may review and modify its contents every five (5) years if necessary.
D. Establishment of Basic Industrial Area Plan, etc. (Articles 6 through 12)
The head of the local government shall, in accordance with the basic national industrial area plan, establish a basic industrial area plan regarding basic direction of management and modification of industrial areas according to type every five (5) years, and enable various plans, projects, etc., to be conducted in connection with and concentrated on industrial areas, thereby enabling systematic management and modification of industrial areas to be conducted effectively.
E. Designation of Industrial Modification Districts, etc. (Articles 13 through 21)
The head of the local government shall, in accordance with the basic industrial area plan, designate industrial modification districts for development of industrial innovation cores or modification of infrastructure, etc., and enable the private sector, etc., to request the designation of industrial modification areas to the head of the local government.
