INCHEON TO PRESERVE ARCHITECTURAL ASSETS

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Incheon was a major port in Korea's early modern era and is still home to various architecture of that era. Incheon City has decided to select some 700 valuable architectural assets, which are not designated cultural properties, to provide more systematic support for their preservation.

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​A cluster of about a dozen red brick buildings. These structures have been standing since the early modern era. They were built as warehouses, banks and logistics companies after Incheon Port was opened to trade in 1883.

[Soundbite] PARK CHUN-HWA(HISTORICAL-CULTURAL COMMENTATOR, INCHEON) : "It's difficult to use the warehouses for their original purpose, so now it's become a venue for artists."

The floodgate at Incheon Port. Buit as the largest of its kind in Asia in 1918, it was designed to overcome the wide tidal range measuring over 10 meters. This factory represents the history of over a hundred textile plants that existed in the Ganghwa area back in the days. Through renovation, this site is turned into a popular tourist destination. The city of Incheon decided to select 714 out of around 520-thousand structures with preservation value, to be provided better management and oversight.

[Soundbite] KWON HYEOK-CHEOL(INCHEON CITY) : "Through this measure we can prevent damage of architectural heritages and better preserve and utilize them."

An area where historical industrial relics are concentrated, including the country's very first modern park, will be named as an architectural asset promotion zone. Architectural assets that endured the tumultuous times of Japan's colonization and the Korean War now serve as valuable pieces of the nation's history.