Investor That Can See The Future

Chapter 397

Saemangeum development project.

It was the largest reclamation project since Dangun, in which the estuaries of the Mangyeong River and Dongjin River in Jeollabuk-do were blocked with a seawall and then reclaimed.

The first construction started in 1991. After 19 years, nearly 3 trillion won was invested to build the world’s longest seawall at 33.9 kilometers.

In the meantime, the construction of the seawall was completed in 2010, although the construction was stopped several times due to a change of president, a change in the ruling party, claims of fishermen’s right to live, and lawsuits due to environmental destruction.

More than 140 times the land of Yeouido was newly created, and the land area of ​​Korea increased by 0.4 percent. And this land was 100% owned by the government.

This was recorded as the world’s largest reclamation project beyond Korea.

The problem started after this. Originally, the main purpose of the Saemangeum project was to secure farmland. However, by the time the seawall was completed, even the farmland that had leftover rice had to be reduced.

When this happened, the government changed the direction of the project to new town development.

Farmland is enough just to drain the seawater and then plant rice there. However, new towns do not have one or two things that need to be done, from the creation of landfill sites to the construction of various infrastructures.

From then on, development costs began to snowball. The government created the Saemangeum Development Agency under the Ministry of Land, Transport and Maritime Affairs, and concentrated its efforts on infrastructure construction and business attraction. Saemangeum international forums and investment briefing sessions were also held periodically. However, no tangible results were obtained no matter how much tax was poured, and the planned construction was sluggish due to the reduced budget.

Local residents, who were once inflated with their dreams of development, sighed as they looked at the empty fields where only dust was blown.

In that way, Saemangeum was reduced to a treasure trove, and it was gradually being forgotten in people’s minds.

* * *

I thought of this when I first saw this prophecy.

Why Saemangeum?

Unless foreknowledge is pointing in the wrong direction, there must be a good reason for being Saemangeum.

After much thought, the answer I came up with was Saemangeum New Town. If a high-tech city of finance and industry that surpasses Seoul is created, wouldn’t that be enough reason to move?

In the general case, cities are formed spontaneously. However, there are also a number of cities that have been deliberately created under the leadership of the government.

Korea has also developed new towns several times. Bundang, Ilsan, Pyeongchon, Sanbon, Pangyo, Gwanggyo, Dongtan, Wirye, etc.

The common feature of these new towns is that they are satellite cities connected to existing large cities. Creating a new city that functions alone is not as easy as it sounds.

The initial idea of ​​Saemangeum was to create an agricultural food production base. However, after that, it was decided to reduce farmland to make it an urban-rural complex, but now it has been designated as a special economic cooperation zone.

According to the ambitious plan presented by the current government, it will make it a center of global free trade. It’s not just this government, but every previous government has been a high-tech city in Jeonbuk, the center of the West Coast era, a hub city in Northeast Asia, Dubai in Asia, an international financial city… … Anyway, all the good words were attached.

I said to Taek-gyu.

“Location is the most important thing in a city. You can change other things with money, but you cannot change the location.”

The city does not exist alone. For people to come and go, transportation must be good, and for businesses to enter, logistics must be good.

Fortunately, the location of Saemangeum is suitable if not the best.

Due to the nature of the reclaimed land, it faces the sea and, of course, the whole country is within two hours. It is connected to the metropolitan area by highway, and it is possible to extend the high-speed rail.

Saemangeum International Airport and Saemangeum Port have already begun construction. However, the construction is sluggish due to budget problems.

Gunsan Port is nearby, or it is possible to send it to Busan Port by truck. If unmanned electric trucks are released anyway, land logistics costs are not a big problem.

Taehyung tilted his head.

“Aren’t there many other locations similar to Saemangeum? I think it will be quite good abroad.”

“The biggest difference is that Saemangeum is 100% central government land with no private land.”

It can be said that there is no other place in the world where the central government owns a site of this size except Saemangeum. This is indeed a huge strength.

“But wouldn’t environmental groups oppose the Saemangeum development? You used to come to Greenpeace to protest and protest.”

“Ah! No need to worry about that.”

“why?”

“I found out that it has already been destroyed and there is no more environment to be destroyed.”

“… … .”

Reclamation projects inevitably destroy the environment. However, the reclamation project for Saemangeum has already been completed, and it is impossible to bring it back.

So even the environmental groups that once fiercely opposed the word Saemangeum are now quiet.

All that remains is how to use the land.

The Saemangeum new town plan was not something I came up with suddenly, but the government had been pushing for it for a long time. It’s just not going well.

The reason the plan is in a stagnant state is that it is experiencing difficulties from the first stage, attracting companies.

If the land price is cheap and a large-scale factory can be built in a place where there is no opposition from the locals, there is no reason to hesitate from a business standpoint.

The problem is that it is difficult to find people to work when the factory is built.

If it is a chimney industry that requires simple labor, high-tech industries require highly educated human resources. Therefore, large companies such as Seoseong, SSK, and CL build semiconductor, battery, and bio factories in the metropolitan area. However, the metropolitan area is already saturated and tied to various regulations. In addition, there are many cases where the plan is canceled due to land purchase and opposition from residents.

After all, the reason why companies do not go to Saemangeum is because most of the talented people are concentrated in and around Seoul.

“Many people want to live in Seoul. Then why do you want to live in Seoul? Do you sleep well when you lie down in Seoul? Do you like the taste of rice when you eat in Seoul?”

“Isn’t it because it’s convenient to live?”

“answer.”

Seoul has all the necessary infrastructure for living. You can enjoy all the conveniences such as work, education, medical care, shopping, and culture. If I live in Seoul, I rarely go out of Seoul except for travel.

People flock to where there are people. It becomes a city that everyone wants to live in because everyone lives there.

Then the conclusion is simple.

You just have to create a city where people want to live.

But the method is not simple.

How can I create a city I want to live in?

I took out the whiteboard.

“What do people need to live?”

“You must have a house.”

“answer.”

I wrote ‘apartment’ on the whiteboard.

“What’s next?”

“You have to have a company.”

I wrote ‘company’ next to ‘apartment’.

A city without commercial facilities becomes a bed town. I just sleep there and commute to work somewhere else. Therefore, in order not to become a bed town, businesses must come in.

But a person cannot live by sleeping and working.

“To raise a child, you need kindergarten and school. You need department stores, marts, and shopping centers to shop. And since we have to enjoy the cultural life, we need a movie theater, an art gallery, and a performance hall.”

“If you want to go out on the weekend, you must have a theme park.”

“The theme park is important. Would you like Disneyland or Universal Studios?”

Taek-gyu thought deeply about my question and answered.

“Can’t we put both in?”

“It’s genius.”

Orlando is the only place where Disneyland and Universal Studios come together. However, there is still some land left in Saemangeum, so there is no law that says not to put both.

“There should be good hotels and resorts.”

“right.”

“Like what we saw in Singapore back then.”

“Marina Bay Sands?”

When you think of Singapore, the first image that comes to mind is three huge buildings and a long boat on top. There is an infinity pool inside the boat, which is attracting attention as a spot for certification shots.

That’s Marina Bay Sands.

As the name of the building suggests, it was the Sands Group that built this hotel. A famous American casino, resort, and hotel group, it operates hotels and casinos in Las Vegas and Macau, as well as around the world.

“It would be nice to have a foreign casino to attract foreign tourists.”

Having written them all down, it’s not just one or two. Will I be able to attract all of this?

The plans that the government and I have made are there. If there is a difference, it will be whether or not you have the ability to implement it.

“Let’s go.”

“Where?”

I said it like it was natural.

“Saemangeum. Wouldn’t it be best to see it with your own eyes?”

* * *

If I go to Saemangeum, there is a high chance that all kinds of rumors will spread before I even start working. So we decided to go secretly.

The car drove along the stretched West Coast Expressway. Even though I was sitting in the driver’s seat, there was nothing I could do about it, as the autonomous driving took care of it anyway.

“Aren’t you going to tell me why you’re going?”

“I’ll tell you later.”

Ellie was next to me, and Taek-gyu and Yuri were sitting in the back seat.

We were going to go alone, but somehow we ended up going together.

The reason is that Ellie, who decided to go shopping with Yuri today, followed her. Yuri naturally followed.

I told Ellie.

“Can I really not go shopping?”

“I had nothing to live for. I think going to the sea would be more fun than shopping. Eat sashimi later.”

Yuri said too.

“Yes. I thought I had to go to a department store to just look around.”

“… … .”

You both have nothing to buy, so why did you decide to go shopping?

I was curious, but for some reason I thought I would be treated like a fool, so I decided not to ask.

With her long blonde hair tied in a ponytail, and wearing jeans and a T-shirt, Yuri looked like an impeccable college student. Ellie wore a white and blue sprite patterned dress and sandals. Even though she didn’t put on heavy makeup, she looked like a model.

“You are really pretty today.”

“Thank you. But in my eyes, glass is much prettier.”

It’s nice to see them complimenting each other on their beauty. If the two went shopping together, everyone in the department store would have looked at them.

I stopped by the rest area for a while following Taek-gyu’s opinion.

Me and Ellie, whose faces were known, did not get out of the car. Instead, Taek-gyu and Yuri have been shopping for food.

“Would you like a hot dog?”

“done.”

“What about beef cake?”

“I’m not going to eat.”

Ellie asked.

“What is a stuffed rice cake?”

“I eat sausage and rice cake together.”

“I want to eat.”

Ellie took a few bites and then she held out a skewer to me.

“Is it delicious? Try Jinhoo too.”(Read more @ wuxiax.com)

I pretended not to win. It was delicious, so I decided to just eat it myself.

It’s like going on a picnic with a group.

After two more hours of driving past the rest area, the Saemangeum Seawall finally appeared. The tens of kilometers of seawall that stretched across the sea was truly spectacular.

It is hard to believe that such a structure was built on the sea. But it didn’t take long for that sentiment to fade.

After entering the Saemangeum landfill, we stopped by the road for a moment and got off.

There was a stretch of sand with no end in sight. Every time the wind blew, dust was blown away, making it difficult to open my eyes.

what kind of yellow dust is it?

Taek-gyu said admiringly.

“Hey! There were deserts in Korea too.”

Seeing it in person, I think I can understand why they cursed for building a desert with taxes.

“Isn’t it worse than you thought?”

I nodded.

“It’s very serious.”

I don’t know where to start and how to start.

I was reminded of Silicon Valley. New towns are being built in places that have been devastated by the earthquake.

If only capital is invested, it will be possible to build a city here.

“Dubai has built a state-of-the-art city by building skyscrapers in a deserted desert. It has now become a world-class tourist destination, attracting over 15 million tourists every year. Compared to Dubai, Saemangeum is much more realistic.”

Taegyu said.

“Isn’t that all thanks to oil money?”

“What… … .”

Although Dubai does not have oil, it is true that oil money has flowed in for development.

For reference, when the financial crisis broke out in the middle, I was in a position to open my hands to Abu Dhabi, the central government. Burj Dubai, a skyscraper that used to be the symbol of Dubai New City, was also transferred to the capital of Abu Dhabi and renamed Burj Khalifa.

“Our money is nothing compared to oil money.”

“Yes.”

In our conversation, Eli and Yuri looked like they did not understand English.

“What are you talking about now?”

I came all the way here with you, and I can’t help but talk to you. After all, it’s something that people all over the world will know.

“It’s still a secret, so for the time being, only the two of us know.”

Yuri nodded vigorously.

“of course. I won’t even tell my dad or uncle.”

I said frankly.

“I want to make a new city here.”

Again, both of them looked embarrassed.

Suddenly, a strong wind blew and dust flew in all directions.