Songtan City Hall (Pyeongtaek Si Sa) (NOTE: Kaiser Pink is the color that the city chose -- a rather strange choice. Overpasses, street structions, etc from the mid-2000s are painted this color. Though color no longer used, some overpasses still retain this color.)

Songtan City Hall (Songtan History)

City Bird: Dove (bidulgi) (NOTE: This was in keeping with the "peace" theme for the city.) (Songtan History)

(L) City Tree: Ginko (eunhaeng) (R) City Flower: Golden rod (Gaenari) (Source: Songtan History)

Songtan City Song (Songtan History)

Air Force Village looking towards Songtan City Hall (1986) (Frank Schreier) (NOTE: Songtan City Hall is to the right in background. Note that the side buildings were not constructed as yet. The first row of the Segyong Apartments (5-story) are going up.)

Air Force Village looking towards Pyeongtaek (1986) (Frank Schreier) (NOTE: The construction on Seojong Tourism Road has not started as yet. Notice the gentle slope of the land leading up to Songtan City Hall. According to Kim Jae-won this area used to covered with kilns used for kimchi pots. Previously these kilns were used for charcoal. Songtan's name comes from "pine" (song) and "charcoal" (tan). This area and the area near Seotan were noted for charcoal production. Tanhyeon-dong near the present Songbuk Farmers' Market, was noted in 1756 as having numerous charcoal kilns which provided charcoal for Seoul -- as only charcoal could be used inside the Seoul city walls by royal dictate.)

Curfew ended The 36 year-old midnight to four a.m. curfew is lifted nationwide, except for coastal regions and areas vulnerable to infiltration. The curfew was first imposed by the US Military Government in Kroea on 8 Sept 1945 and had continued as a means of insuring national security. The measure came after a government decision to reinforce police manpower. Security measures at USFK installations and pass policies would be governed by local command policies. (Source: The US Military Experience in Korea 1871-1982, p235, Command Historian's Office, USFK/EUSA)

(L) Aragon Alley Outside Main Gate (1984) (Mike Dunnagan) (R) Aragon Alley Outside Main Gate (1984) (Mike Dunnagan)

(L) Overpass Bridge to Main Gate (1984) (Mike Dunnagan); (R) Railroad Track area (1984) (Mike Dunnagan)

(SOURCE: The photos of Mike Dunnagan, former A1C, 51st Civil Engineering Squadron (1984-85); Osan Retired Activities Office; and Osan AB History Web Page)

Later as the Miracle of the Han spread south in the 1980s, more and more small and mid-size factories moved into the area. With this there was an increase in population and more low-cost housing was built (three-story models). This construction started near the railroad track area and spread outward. One can identify these areas as the older streets are typical narrow winding streets following the topography (lay of the land) with many dead ends. However, the newer construction areas (late 1980s onward) follow a western-style grid pattern (though the streets are still narrow). The main roads were paved and a national program started in the late 1980s to cover the country roads -- typically the lanes connecting rice paddies with the hamlet homes -- with concrete.

MSR1 leading to Main Gate (1984) (Mike Dunnagan) (NOTE: This is at the "Y" intersection where the left road goes to the Songbuk Farmers Market Road (MSR-1 Bypas) and the right continues on to the Tanhyeon Road (MSR-1) to the base. The sign is written in Chinese characters and there is a Lions Club shield in the center. "Songtan" is written in hangul (Korean) on the lower right leg of the arch.)

Han Il Enterprises completed a remicon (ready mixed concrete) plant in Songtan in July 1984. This reflected the Miracle of the Han reaching Songtan and the surrounding areas. Remicon (ready mixed concrete) was essential in the construction industry -- and indicated that there was going to be sustained construction in the area -- for factories and apartments.

The first fire station for Songtan was built in Nov 1958. It was a one engine station that sat up on the Milwal-dong hill across from the Jungang Movie Theater with a fire watch tower overlooking the Chong-mun eup (New Town) shanties. However, on 1 Sep 1983, both Pyeongtaek and Songtan shared the same fire department. On 30 Nov 1984, a new fire station opened up in Songtan. It was located next to the present location of the Korea Telecom building on the MSR-1 (Jwadong Road). On 1 Dec 1984, a small police station was opened in Songtan at its present location across from the Songbuk Farmers' Market. (Source: Pyeongtaek History, Pyeongtaek Si Sa)

Korean Master Plan The construction of these apartments in Songtan was part of a ROK master plan to relocate industrial zones to the "suburbs" of Seoul. The planning started in the early 1980s and projects for expansion of the infrastructure was started in the mid-1980s. Starting in 1990, major construction projects were started for national, regional and local industrial complexes. The new apartments were required to house the workers for these factories.

The rapid growth of South Korea's economy in the late 1980s led to significant increases in exports and imports. In the wake of the 1988 Seoul Olympics, South Korea's trade surplus exceeded US$11 billion and foreign exchange revenue had increased sharply. Seoul's trade with communist countries surged in 1988. Trade with Eastern Europe was US$215 million, trade with China almost US$1.8 billion, and trade with the Soviet Union US$204 million. In 1989 total exports grew to US$74.29 billion, and imports totaled US$67.21 billion. South Korea's annual trade exceeded US$100 billion for the first time in 1988, making it the world's tenth largest trading nation.

Because this there was a rapid expansion outside of Seoul as the need for factories grew. As a result, in the Pyongtaek area, there was a significant number of factories that were relocated to industrial parks specially constructed for expanding factories. (See 1990: "ROK offers Incentives for Songtan Industrial Complex (Mokgok-dong)")

The spin off is that starting in the mid-1980s, there was an upgrade of the infrastructure throughout Korea -- not only in Songtan. Before any industrial complexes could be started, the apartment complexes to house the workers -- and to attract new businesses to the area -- needed to be in place. It then became a snowball as with the increase in factories in the 1990s came an increase in other service-industry jobs and in turn the need for more apartments. Thus a construction boom occurred. At first it was small scale in reclaiming rice fields and swampy land near to the major highways for "low-rise structures" (10 story apartment complexes). However , soon large scale apartment complexes were planned throughout the Pyongtaek area. (NOTE: This construction boom continued until the 1997 IMF Crisis when new construction collapsed.)

Expansion of Songtan In the 1980s, the outlook for Songtan looked bright. Though the country was torn apart by the riots that followed the takeover of the ROK government by Chun Doo-hwan in 1980 and the brutal suppression of the Kwangju Uprising, very little turmoil touched the Songtan area -- though protests did occur outside of Osan AB as activists felt that the USFK had supported Chun Doo-hwan's takeover.

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Songtan: (Top L) Railroad tracks looking north (Notice the Shinjang Rail Overpass in distance. The large building in the top left is the Songtan Tourist Hotel built in 1978.); (Top R) Hanil Church's steeple is evident across from overpass. (Bottom L) Milwal Road in Shinjang-2 dong with Seojong (later Jungang) Theater at top of hill. Large buildings below it are the Songshin Elementary (right), Taegwang Middle School (middle) and Pokchang Elementary School (left) (Bottom R) Hill 180 with houses spread all the way up the hill. (1985) (Songbuk Elementary School)


2005: (L) Songtan Tourist Hotel (Aug 2005) (Kalani O'Sullivan) (R) Songtan Hotel Front Desk Ms. Choi (Aug 2005) (Kalani O'Sullivan)

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• Songbuk-dong The businesses were expanding into the area as the construction of new low-rise apartments continued and more businesses from Seoul relocated to the area. The Songbuk Farmers' Market remained basically unchanged, but the area started to get more congested as there was no expansion over the ridgeline into the Jwa-dong area. The area became congested with dump trucks because of all the construction that was going on within the Songtan area. After the "black only" clubs had relocated back to the Shinjang area from the Jwa-dong area in the 1970s, the only thing that remained in the area were small shops specializing in electrical, plumbing or hardware. Some small clubs continued in the area as Korean only night spots.
  
  The new areas for apartments had not been reclaimed as yet. The construction of these areas would start in the late 1980s and be completed in the 1990s.
  
  Along the southern slopes of Jisan Park Hill, new three-to-five story apartment buildings were constructed. The roads followed the old topographic scheme and roads twist around the apartments. These would be the last of the apartments built in such a manner and all later construction south of the dividing road at the base of Jisan Park Hill would be laid out in a grid pattern. The growth would be southward until the new Seojong Road in what is now Ichung dong. The master plan called for the creation of a new administrative center that combined Songtan and Seojong-ni into one area.
  
  
  (L) School Playground Activities (R) Sports Day (1980) (Songbuk Elementary School)
  
  
  (L) School Playground Activities (R) Sports Day (Mothers' Volleyball) (1980) (Songbuk Elementary School) (NOTE: Notice the side buildings of the school)
  
  
  Songbuk Elementary School (1984) (Songbuk Elementary School)
  
  Songtan Gets New Fire Station and Police Station The first fire station for Songtan was built in Nov 1958. On 30 Nov 1984, a new fire station opened up in Songtan. On 1 Dec 1984, a small police station was opened in Songtan. (Source: Pyeongtaek History, Pyeongtaek Si Sa)
  
  Remicon Plant Opens in Songtan Han Il Enterprises completes a remicon plant in Songtan in July 1984. This reflects the Miracle of the Han reaching Songtan and the surrounding areas. Remicon (ready mixed concrete) is essential in the construction industry -- and indicates that there was going to be sustained construction in the area -- for factories and apartments.
  
  
  MSR1 leading to Main Gate (1984) (Mike Dunnagan) (NOTE: The sign is written in Chinese characters and there is a Lions Club shield in the center. "Songtan" is written in hangul (Korean) on the lower right leg of the arch.)
  
  
• Seojong-dong The Seojong-ni area saw growth in the form of new three-to-five story apartment structures being built just outside the "old town area." Growth was modest. The "old town" (Seojong Market Road and Seojong Train Station area) remained unchanged.
  
  Construction of low three-to-five story apartment buildings were continued in the areas between Seojong-ni and Songtan -- effectively joining the two areas. The construction of low-rent apartments between Burak Mountain Road and the Seojong Tourism Road was undertaken. At the time, there was not much thought given to cars and parking as there were still relatively few cars on the road. In a few years, when the automobile explosion occurred in Korea, it would come back to haunt the designers as there was inadequate parking. Though the roads were adequate for the 1980s, the congestions would become a nightmare in the 2000s.
  
  The new City Hall for Songtan was started. The boundary for Seojong-dong ran along the Jisan Hill following the Burak Mountain Road ran down Rte 1 until it came to the City Hall then went across the Rte 1 to encompass the structure and then back across Rte 1 road leading to Ichung-dong. The significance is that the city planners were symbolically placing the new Songtan City Hall in the "new" area for Seojong-dong that would encompass its "old" Seojong-ni area and the "new" Songtan Tourism Road area.
  
  
• Shinjang 1-dong After Korea's new transportation system was opened in the mid-1970s, transportation was much easier. The bar area known Korea-wide by Americans as "Songtan" was upgraded. On the weekends, individuals from Kunsan and the DMZ started to frequent the bars and go shopping in the area. The Shinjang Shopping Mall was starting to rival Itaewon as a shopping mecca. During the Vietnam War years and the years thereafter there was a tremendous amount of TDY traffic into Osan AB and these visitors immediately filled their aircraft with brass, quilted blankets, furniture and other Korean items as souveniers. After the Vietnam War, the Team Spirit exercises brought soldiers and airmen from around the world to Osan to support the exercise -- and was a boon to the shops in the area.
  
  
  Shinjang 1-dong House Office located on Hill near railroad tracks was established in 1962. In the Shinjang Mall area, many of the brick/stucco exterior buildings were upgraded through the use of ceramic tiles and false fronts were erected on all the shops that faced Shinjang Mall Road. The appearance of the shops were modern and the streets now sported sidewalks and street lights.
  
  
  Railroad Track area (1984) (Mike Dunnagan)
  
  
  Aragon Alley Outside Main Gate (1984) (Mike Dunnagan)
  
  
  Aragon Alley Outside Main Gate (1984) (Mike Dunnagan)
  
  
  Overpass Bridge to Main Gate (1984) (Mike Dunnagan)
  
  In the early 1980s, planning was taking place at all levels and the new Route 1 Bypass was started. The new road to the back gate of Osan AB was completed between 1980-1983. At the same time, the fields were being drained and filled in the Jisan-dong area. This was a major undertaking and would take until the mid-1980s to complete.
  
  Between 1980-1983, the Back Gate (Doolittle Gate) Road was undertaken. The road started in Seotan-myeon and ended in Songtan area. The road cut off from Route 1 (MSR-1) and a new overpass was constructed. Because the overpass was not simply a span between two hills, it took longer to construct than most overpasses. The road eventually spanned the Kyongbu Railway and ran across the bridge for the Jisan Stream (Cheon). There was a small road already existing to the Mokcheon area from the Back Gate dating to the 1960s. The road basically followed the same route that was laid out by the 839th EAB for the initial road through the Doolittle Gate area to bring in the equipment to the base as Hill 180 was still impassable in 1952 and the Shinjang Mall Road was still under construction. (NOTE: The Pyeongtaek City records do NOT recognize this road as being constructed in 1952 though we have provided photographic proof of its existence in 1953 -- as well as the Aug 51 overview drawing by the 417th EAB indicating this road as existing.)
  
  

  Route 1 Intersection to Doolittle Gate (Jun 2005) (Kalani O'Sullivan)	Shinjang View from Doolittle Gate road (Jun 2005) (Kalani O'Sullivan)
  Shinjang View from Doolittle Gate road (Jun 2005) (Kalani O'Sullivan)	Shinjang View from Doolittle Gate road (Jun 2005) (Kalani O'Sullivan)
  Shinjang View from Doolittle Gate road (Jun 2005) (Kalani O'Sullivan)	Street to Bravo Gate (Jun 2005) (Kalani O'Sullivan)

  In 1983, the Namsan Village Road was built to open the housing areas in the Namsan Village areas to the Main Gate. After the Osan Hotel was cleared, the road was built to follow the perimeter. After a slight jog to the right, the road continued straight into Namsan Village at the base of Hill 170.
  
  The Jeyok Road was built to intersect the Aragon alley and Yong Chon alley roads. At about the same time, the Mokcheon Underpass was built and the road to the top of Hobak Hill (Pumpkin Hill) to the Shinjang House Office was built.
  
  

  
  Shinjang View from Doolittle Gate road (Jun 2005) (Kalani O'Sullivan)
  
  
  Street to Bravo Gate (Jun 2005) (Kalani O'Sullivan)
  
  
• Shinjang 2-dong (NOTE: Shinjang 2-dong did NOT exist at this time) After the drainage and reclamation of the last rice fields between Milwal Road and the Kyongbu Train tracks in the 1970s growth in the Milwal area was relatively slow. However, after the construction boom hit in the 1980s and new construction extended outward from the "old area" basically in a line parallel with the Capital Hotel at the top of Milwal Road to the Kyongbu railway tracks. Some of the older concrete structures were upgraded with ceramic tile facings in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Today there are few 1960s structures, except for the few that are next to the Kyongbu train tracks. After the Pokchang Elementary School, the density of housing along its sides tapers off significantly. The road runs until the Seojong-ni area. These structures from the 1980s are easily identifiable by the construction with red fire bricks. In addition the new areas were laid out in a grid patterns versus the jumbled maze in the Jungang Open Market Shopping area near the Shinjang Road overpass.
  
  After the rice fields had been reclaimed in the mid-1970s, the Taegwang School Road was constructed and runs parallel to the Kyongbu Railway tracks. Actually this area had started with a U-shaped area with the shanty houses hastily thrown together on the west side of Hill 180 spilled down to the edge of the rice fields. Businesses grew on both sides of the road to MSR-1 that became the Shinjang Road. To the right of the Shinjang Road heading towards the MSR-1, the Sogwang area became the "business area" with small hardware shops and a used lumber yard. (NOTE: Some of the old buildings from the 1960s -- identifiable by their transite (corrugated concrete/asbestoes sheets) roofs -- still remained into the 2000s.) However, the bulk of the buildings in the Jungang Shopping area are from the "building boom" of the late 1970s and while the houses after the Jungang Shopping area near Songshin School are from the early 1980s on.
  
  Along the Taegwang School Road -- which starts at the Shinjang Road Overpass -- there are rows of houses built with the popular red fire brick used in the 1980s. This area is laid out in the grid pattern used after the 1980s. Almost all of the houses and structures in the area were built with red brick.
  
  
  (L) Taewang School Road looking toward Overpass (R) Taegwang School Road looking toward Seojong-ni (Aug 2005) (Kalani O'Sullivan)

Reclamation of the Jisan-dong area and Construction of Route 1 Bypass In the 1970s, Korea started a massive project to improve its mass transit systems. Subway work and highway construction started everywhere. By the mid-1970s, the Pusan-Seoul highway was complete and branches were being constructed off of the main highways to connect the nation.

By the 1980s, the highway system was complete and travel was relatively easy to move around, but there still was not an abundance of cars clogging the highways. Unlike Seoul, the traffic in Songtan still remained minimal as the explosion of automobiles in the Korean society still had not occurred in the country side. But the population in the Songtan area continued to grow.

By 1985, Korea was starting to be a major exporter of cars and domestic production was increasing rapidly. The cars were affordable and soon the traffic jams seen in the cities were being experienced in the countryside. More and more cars were starting to appear on the Songtan streets and soon parking became a problem in the once open streets. In the Songtan area, the original MSR-1 and MSR-1 Bypass were becoming bottlenecks.

Also in the mid-1980s, the infrastructure in the area was being improved in anticipation for the building of the national/regional/local industrial parks that would be moving into the area. However, the Miracle of the Han was about to move into the area and this required some radical changes for the community.

The first step was to ensure the area had the infrastructure to support this development of industrial parks in the form of rail, roads and ship traffic. Pyeongtaek Harbor started work on the expansion of its piers, the rail systems were improved; and the roads were upgraded and expanded. Route 40 to Pyeongtaek and Route 50 to Suwon were upgraded. The West Coast Highway (Seohan Highway - Route 15) was started down in Sochon 22km from Kunsan and would expand in both directions -- north to Seoul and south to Mokpo. Construction of the major routes in the area were undertaken.

For the Songtan area, the removal of the bottleneck along the MSR-1 and MSR-1 Bypass Roads was required. (SEE MSR-1 and MSR-1 Bypass Road.) A new bypass route was laid out over the rise along the base of the Buraksan Mountain and stretched to the end of the Jungang-dong where it rejoined the original MSR-1 which then ran straight to Pyeongtaek. The Route 1 was now a four lane highway from Osan City that expanded to an eight-lane highway after it entered Songtan. In addition, the side roads into the countryside where the industrial growth would take place were improved to connect the industrial areas to Route 1. All of this was part of the master plan to improve the infrastructure throughout the Pyeongtaek area for the many industrial parks that were planned to be built to move the factories out of Seoul. (NOTE: The back roads of Route 304 in Jinwi-myeon and Route 340 through Seojong-ni would have to wait another twenty years before any improvements were seen.)

In conjunction with this expansion of the road systems, there was a move to ensure the adequacy of housing for the increase in worker populations. In the Songtan area, the change involved the reclamation of the rice fields and swamp land in low areas near the MSR-1 Bypass Road and the building of apartment complexes on the reclaimed areas. The first were the Life Apartments and Jangmi Apartments, but soon others began to go up as the land was reclaimed. On the reclaimed ground, the apartment height was restricted to only ten stories because of the water table.

The first step was rerouting the Jisan Stream (Jisancheon) into an underground culvert. The Jisan Cheon (Stream) flowed down the valley into the Songtan area along a stream that led down past the back gate (Doolittle Gate) road. Part of the stream ran to the sump area and Budochang reservoir that was being drained and reclaimed as apartments and for Route 1 construction. A culvert was constructed to divert the stream underground. The culvert runs beneath the Jisan Cheon (Stream) Road which goes behind the Daelim and Dongbu Apartments and intersects with the west side of Route 1. On the east side of Route 1, it becomes the Jisan Cheon (Stream) Bottom Road and runs down past the Life Apartments and to the "Y" intersection of Tanhyeon Road (MSR-1) and Songbuk Market Road (MSR-1 Bypass) -- where the first "Foreigners Apartments" were built by the Korean National Housing Corporation (KNHC) for Osan AB families. (NOTE: It was considered inadequate even though brand new because it was built to Korean standards.)

Before Route 1 was built, there was a natural sump area formed by the Burak Mountain to the east and the Jisan Hill and ridgeline to the west. The Jisan Stream filled the sump area created by the "bowl" by the convergence of the Jisan Hill and Burak Mountain to the south and the ridgeline to the north. This sump area that formed Boduchang (Paradise Lake) extended from what is now the Jisan Hyundai Apartments and about half of the Jisan Kunyong Apartments. In the 1970s, there was very little in the way of entertainment in the area, besides the bars and movies. The one place that was available for recreation was Paradise Lake (Boduchang). Actually a reservoir, it had row boats.

This reservoir had to drained before the road and apartment construction could be completed. The reclamation of the swamp area in the Jisan-dong area was started in the early 1980s. The land was mosquito-infested, swamp land or rice paddies. Prior to this project, the area east of MSR-1 (next to the express bus terminal) was all swamp or rice field. The rice paddies and swamp land were drained and filled. In the Jisan-dong area, the Paradise Lake (Boduchang) was drained and portions of Jisan Hill and Burak Mountain were cut away as fill quarries. This major project enabled land to be made available for the construction of new apartments.

According to reports, Boduchang (Paradise Lake) did not extend past the present Route 1 area which was "high ground." In order to get to Songbuk Elementary School, children walked along a path at the base of Jisan Park Hill (Songtan Park) near what is now the Jangmi Apartments and then along the base of the Burak Mountain to the school.

The reservoir was large and covered the area of the Hyundai Apartments and Kunyong Apartments -- up to about its entrance across from the Jisan Elementary School. This reservoir area ran in front of the Jisan Elementary School and the small stationary shop on the corner across the street. According to Mr. Kwon Oh-hoon Paradise Lake extended down to the corner of the intersection where there is a stationary shop and over to the Kunyong Apartments. In the mid-1980s, the Boduchang reservoir (Paradise Lake) was drained and the area dug out to be used as fill for the reclamation of the rice fields and swamps in the area. If one looks at the map of the Jisan Hill, one will see how a large piece was taken out of the hill.

Map of Jisan Park Hill (Songtan Park) area (2005) (Map at Songbuk-dong House Office)

2005 (L) Defunct Amusement Park (Aug 2005) (Kalani O'Sullivan) (R) Rear of Jisan Elementary School (Aug 2005) (Kalani O'Sullivan) (NOTE: The weeping willows are seen to the far right on the boundary.)

The first of the apartments in Jisan-dong were the Jangmi Apartments (followed by the Jaeil Apartments) near the Jisan Hill (Songtan Park). After the Boduchang Reservoir (Paradise Lake) was drained, the Kunyong and Hyundai Apartments were built. However, on the reclaimed ground, the apartment height was restricted to only ten stories because the land was previously swamp land. In the areas that were carved out of the Jisan Hill to be used as fill, the Miju and Jisan Hanming Apartments were built, along with the Jisan Elementary School. Construction of the first apartments was complete in 1990. Jisan Elementary opened its doors on 1 Jun 1993. All construction in the area was complete in 1995.

According to the owner of the stationary shop-toy store (Jisan Mungu Hwangu), Paradise Lake covered the Hyundai Apartment and Kunyong Apartment area up to about the entrance to the apartment complex across from the Jisan Elementary School. It then extended across what would become Route 1. (Source: Conversation Kalani O'Sullivan with owner Jisan Mungu-Hwangu Stationary Shop, 25 Aug 2005.) The stationary shop is a 1960s structure with a transite roof and because of its lower level, it lends credence to the lake being at the lower level.


Paradise Lake (Boduchang) (1976) (Harry Tezlaf) (NOTE: The weeping willows are the trees to the left in the photo.)

After the land had settled, apartments were constructed on the reclaimed land completing construction in the 1990s. However, these new "low-rise" apartments were limited to ten stories because of the water table. These apartments would be the lower middle-class area of the city. In conjunction with these new constructions, new schools were added to the area. In the Jisan dong area, the Jisan Elementary School and Songtan Middle School were built upon the land that had been used as fill quarries.

Map of the Songtan Area (2004) (Songbuk House Office)


To the east of Route 1, new apartments were constructed starting with the Songtan Saemik Apartments near Songbuk Elementary School and extended down to the Aju and Miju apartments near the new Songtan Middle School. The fill for the new apartment areas was taken from the Jisan Hill Park and the Burak Mountain area. If one looks at the map above, one will see how areas of the Jisan Park Hill to the west has been "gouged out." These were the fill quarries used to fill in the rice fields and swamp area between the MSR-1 Bypass Road and the new Route 1 bypass being constructed at the base of the Buraksan Mountain. These "gouges" later became the Jisan Elementary School and small government-subsidized apartment complexes. (See 1970s: Paradise Lake which was drained and area used as a fill quarry.) To the west side of the new Route 1, the fill quarries was at the base of the Buraksan mountain in what later became Aju apartment complex and Songtan Middle School.

Just outside the "old" section of Seojong-ni along Shinseon Road (MSR-1 Bypass), government subsidized low-rise apartments were built on the left on the road. It should be noted that the apartment complexes built to the west of Route 1 were designed for low-income (17 pyong apartments) and lower middle-income families (28-32 pyong apartments). At this time, the Korean government was subsidizing the construction of lower-income housing nationwide to move poor families from the crowded "ghettos" into small apartments. It should be noted that none of the apartments in this period were designed for upper-middle income families. These would be built in the new Ichung-dong area where the new administrative center of the city was being planned. (NOTE: In Seoul, high rise apartment complexs were built to move the poor people out of the hovels covering the hillsides or delapidated 1960s structures packed together in the cramped side streets of urban areas. These poor would be allowed to "purchase" small apartments where sanitation and improved living conditions were assured. As a secondary reason, when the poor were relocated, the areas were freed to pursue the urban renewal projects such as upscale apartment complexes.)

Simultaneously, the work started on the Ichung-dong area as the new administrative center and "middle ground" between the Songtan and Seojong-ni areas. The Songtan Branch Office of the Pyeongtaek City Hall was constructed in the Ichung-dong area. The Jeomchon area was noted to have contained kilns for pottery making dating back to the 1920s when Hwang Kum-seok came to make pottery for sale. Soon many people came to the area to make kimchi pots. (Source: Songtan History) However, this construction meant that all of these kilns had to be cleared away. (SEE Songtan City: 1981)

According to Mr. Kim Jae-won, the first proposed location was the Jisan Hill (Songtan Park) area, but the owner refused. Instead, the present location was selected. Symbolically it was on the border of the two areas that would make up Songtan City -- Songtan and Seojong-myeon. Mr. Kim mentioned seeing on his way to school that the slope in front in front of the City Hall contained many kilns. According to him, these kilns were converted from charcoal manufacturing. (Source: Verbal Conversation with Mr. Kim Jae-won, owner of Aisa Hotel, on 26 Sep 2005.) (SEE Songtan City: 1981)

A grid pattern was laid out for roads -- including the new Seojong Tourism Road and Burak Mountain Road. Along the Burak Mountain Road, the second "Foreigners' Apartments" (Miguk Apatu) was constructed for Osan AB personnel. It was called Air Force Village. The next apartments to go up were the Segyo Apartments. Construction in the area was completed in the 1990s -- after Songtan was merged with Pyeongtaek City. (SEE Songtan City: 1981)

High-rise apartments continued to be erected in the Seojeong-ni and Jungang-dong areas and turned the face of the Songtan area into a city -- instead of a country town.


Fuel Tank Explosion (1986)




Fuel Tank Explosion (1986)



Fuel Tank Explosion at Osan AB On 5 April 1986, a 40,000 gallon fuel tank exploded killing in the initial blast one USAF NCO and fourteen contractor personnel who were cutting the grass nearby. 12 injured were treated at the Osan clinic, while some burn victims were air evacuated to Yongan Army Garrison hospital by helicopter. Six others were treated and then transferred to Kyonggi General Hospital. Five were treated at Osan, then released. (Source: MIG Alley Flyer, 16 Apr 86) One Korean died later bringing the death toll to 16. Numerous acts of bravery were seen that day in fighting the fire and treating the injured. According to the 51st FW Extract - Jan-Jun 1986 History:

A loud explosion rocked Osan and the local community at 1314 hours on 5 April. A 40,000 barrel JP-4 tank (Building 7277) that was approximately 40 percent full exploded causing 15 fatalities and 12 serious injuries. The fire at the fuel tank took place during a fuel transfer operation. The black smoke and orange flames from the explosion and resulting fire were visible for miles around the base. The blaze at the fuel tank had to be fought until 1700 hours, and was not officially determined to be extinguished until 0700 hours the following day. Fire fighters and equipment from Osan, Songtan Si City Fire Department, Suwon, Kunsan, Camp Casey, Camp Market, Camp Red Cloud, Yongsan Army Garrison, Clark AB, Philippines, Yokota AB and Misawa AB, Japan were all involved in fighting the blaze. The 51st FW Disaster Preparedness Division immediately activated the Disaster Response Force and Disaster Preparedness Support team. An on-scene Disaster Control Group was also formed to assist and advise the on-scene commander. Colonel Koz acted as the on-scene commander immediately after the explosion but appointed Colonel William L. Austin, 51st Civil Engineering Squadron commander upon his arrival at the scene. Colonel Koz was the wing commander since Colonel Cochran had departed the base for the PACAF Wing Commander's Conference at Hickam AFB, Hawaii. The 51st Security Police evacuated all buildings endangered by the explosion and established a 2000 foot corridor. The corridor had to be moved several times to compensate for fuel leaking into the draining systems and the associated danger of another explosion taking place.

Medical personnel at Osan responded immediately to the explosion. In fact, one doctor and two technicians arrived on the scene almost immediately. The hospital had an on-site medical care facility established within fifteen minutes, and after only 20 minutes, 80 percent of the hospital staff had reported for duty. Osan medical personnel received assistance from Camp Humphreys, Suwon and 1st Aeromedical Evacuation Squadron located at Pope AFB, North Carolina. The people from Pope at Osan were waiting to return to the United States from Team Spirit. Four Navy corpsman assigned to the 1st Marine Amphibious who were waiting on the flightline for transportation responded immediately to the explosion site. The first ambulance to depart the scene with two seriously injured people went straight to the flight line and a CH-3 "Jolly Green Giant" assigned to the 38th Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Squadron had its engines running and ready to depart. Once injured people were placed on board the helicopter, the helicopters departed immediately for the 121st Evacutation Hospital in Seoul.

Winds hampered the efforts of the fire fighters. On different occasions it appeared that the fire had been extinguished, but the winds would arise and renew the flames. So much foam had to be poured on the fire that the area around the fuel tank quickly turned into a muddy field. This mud hampered getting the large fire fighting equipment in and out to fight the blaze, Personnel assigned to the 554th Civil Engineering Squadron "Red Horse", quickly made an access road for fire equipment. One of the main concerns during the fighting of the fire was the shortage of foam. Foam had to be transported in from different locations from helicopters and dumped straight in the fire trucks. At 1700 hours the fire had been extinguished, but as mentioned it was not offically declared as being completely out until the following day. Fire fighters had to stay on duty for several days after the fire had been put out to ensure it did not erupt again.

Fourteen contractor personnel and one Air Force NCO were killed by the initial blast and the subsequent fire. The NCO killed was Sergeant Enrique J. Lozano who had been assigned to the 51st Supply Squadron. Sergeant Lozano had been working at the fuel tank prior tot he explosion. The Search and Recover (SRT) found the body in the tank five days after the explosion.

Many acts of heroism took place at Osan right after the explosion and during the fighting of the fire. Personnel entered the fire area to and turned off fuel lines to keep the fire from spreading by receiving more fuel. On 7 May General Robert G. Bazley, PACAF Commander, presented medals to 13 Air Force and one Army member for their acts of heroism. The General presented seven Airman Medals and seven Meritorious Service Medals.

Fuel Tank Explosion (1986)

A memorial marker was erected in memorium of the individuals who lost their lives in the tragic accident -- one USAF NCO and 15 Koreans. The mother of Sgt Enrique Lozano was flown in for the ceremony.

Sgt Enrique Lozano
Song Son-Sid
Pae Tok-so
O Tae-kun
Chon Yun-pil
Son Sun-son
Choi Mal-sun
Yi Su-nam
Ho, Chong-ae
Yu, Cho-ho
Pak Yang-hui
Yu Cha-kum
Kim Ok-hui
An O-sun
Pak Sun-ho
Pak Wan-pae

Late 1980s Songtan City grew in 1987 as areas were incorporated into Seojong-dong. On January 1, 1987, part of Jeokbong-ri, Seotan-myeon, Pyeongtaek-gun was incorporated into Seojeong-dong, Songtan-si by Presidential Decree No. 12007 (Promulgated December 23, 1986) (Source: Pyeongtaek History, Pyeongtaek Si Sa)

The Ichung-dong construction was continuing with its high-rise apartments in an area designed to be the center of activity for the Songtan area. The new apartments were to stretch from the City Hall to Route 340. The construction companies that had completed the low-rise construction in the Jisan and Songbuk-dong areas now shifted their efforts to the Ichung-dong area.

Though the Route 1 bypass in Songtan was opened, construction continued to expand the highway system to Pyeongtaek. Ironically, the bottle-neck on Route 1 from Suwon continued to exist in the Osan City area. Perhaps it was the ROK planners intention when they opened up the Osan Toll Gate in the late 1970s to the Kyongbu Expressway that the traffic flow was not intended to pass through Osan. (NOTE: The bottleneck conditions persisted -- and worsened -- in the Osan City area in the 2000s. But by then the infrastructure had been much improved to bypass Osan City altogether.)

In the 1980s, the Doolittle Gate was created with the idea of eliminating the congestion at the Main Gate. The ROK signed off on the idea and the road to the Doolittle Gate was built between 1980-1983 according to the Shinjang 1-dong House Office. At that time, there was no overpass to the base and the base hired a gate guard to man the rail crossing of the Kyongbu Railway line. This crossing guard remained until the overpass was completed in 1988. Normal traffic was NOT allowed into the Doolittle Gate and the Main Gate remained the entry to the base. However, according to long-time residents, the road was blocked off until after 1989.


(L) Marker on Kyongbu Railway Overpass on Doolittle Gate Road (2005) (Kalani O'Sullivan); (R) Overpass on Doolittle Gate Road. (2005) (Kalani O'Sullivan)

The overpass to the Doolittle Gate was not built until 1988. Construction was started on 18 Jun 1987 and completed on 28 Dec 1988. The span is 450 meters long and 15.5 meters wide. (Source: Marker on Overpass.) The overpass has an ideal view of the End of Runway for takeoffs and landings.

(L) Jisan Stream with one branch leading to Jinwi and other from the Jisan Stream (2005) (Kalani O'Sullivan); (R) Marker on the Jisancheon Bridge leading to Doolittle Gate. Marker erected by Gu San-il. (2005) (Kalani O'Sullivan)

We also have some problems with the completion of the road as the marker in Hangul on the Jinsancheon (Jisan Stream) bridge shows that the bridge was constructed in 1986. The hangul on the marker states that the bridge was built during the Songtan City period. The marker was erected by Gu San-il. (Source: Marker on Jisancheon bridge.) At this time we believe the bridge was expanded in 1986 to a four-lane bridge when the construction on the road to the Doolittle Gate took place. (NOTE: In 1951, the Jinsancheon was shown on the Aug 51 931st EAG map as part of the Jinwi River. In 2005, there was construction as a new road is being built adjacent to the stream that will pass through the Mokchan and run parallel with the railway tracks.)

At the Y-intersection, the road to the Doolittle Gate goes up hill and runs along the side of the Bomb Dump Hill. In the 1980s, the road was elevated as shown by the overpass at the Kujang (Shinjang-ni) Village. At the intersection, there is a parallel road that runs into the Kujang (Shinjang-ni) Village. There is an overpass for the road to the Doolittle Gate with the underpass leading from the village to the Mokchan Village Road prior to the Bravo Gate. (NOTE: "Kujang" means "old market" and "Shinjang" means "new market." The village area was the market for the Jinwi administrative area in the Chosun Dynasty. When Jae Yok-dong (Chicol-ni and later Shinjang Mall area) was founded in 1522), the Kujang town was already serving as the market area of Jinwi-myeon. In the Chosun period, the Jinwi area was the main administrative office for the area.)

(L) Overpass leading to Kujang Village. (NOTE: This road connects to Mokchan Road.) (2005) (Kalani O'Sullivan); (R) Old house in Kujang Village. (2005) (Kalani O'Sullivan)

The Doolittle Gate was built under contract, but there is no marker to indicate which company built it. The entry control point was built by the 554th CESHR "Red Horse" and their seal is at the base of the entry door. (NOTE: The Doolittle Gate was renovated under contract in 2004.)

At the same time, Pyeongtaek Harbor was expanding and the benefits for the local area translated to more factories dealing with exports would be attracted to the area to take advantage of the expanding harbor facilities.

Pyeongtaek Harbor Liquid Natural Gas (LNG) terminal opens (1 Nov 1986). (Pyeongtaek City) (Source: Pyeongtaek History (CD), Pyeongtaek Si Sa)

In the mid 1980s, the construction of the Route 1 straight over the rise instead of going through the town was started. This new stretch bypassed the old MSR-1 route through the center of town. The road ran from the small rise in Songbuk-dong through the Jisan-dong area past the Seojong-dong area and rejoined the old MSR-1 route after it exited the Jungang area. This was part of an overall plan to improve the infrastructure throughout the area in conjunction with the building of local, regional and national industrial parks.

By the late 1980s, the major portion of Route 1 had been completed and the construction of the apartments undertaken. The low-rise apartments between Burak Mountain Road and the Seojong Tourism Road were completed in the mid-1980s. Many of the apartments in the Jisan area were completed in 1990. The apartments on the Songbuk dong side (east) of Route 1 were completed in the early 1990s. Immediately, these apartments were filled with employees of such large automotive companies as Kia just over the boundary in Yong-in and the Ssangyong plant in the Songtan area.

Seoul Olympics Seoul hosted the Olympics and the attitude of the entire country changed overnight into one of ambassadors of goodwill. Venues were spread throughout the country to accomodate the interests of local governments and promote the tourism industry. In a gesture of goodwill, the Seoul government offered North Korea one of the ping-pong matches because of the late date. North Korea refused and there were worries that it might attempt an act to disrupt the games in retaliation as it had done in 1987 with the bombing of an airliner to scare people away from the games. A small number of F-4E aircraft at Osan and F-16C at Kunsan were placed on alert in event of this eventuality starting around 15 Sep 1988.


36th TFS aircraft escorts TU-16 Badger off the coast of Korea ( 36th Fiends site)

Just prior to the Olympic Games Russian Badgers started to fly down the coastline of Korea to test the capabilities of the US/ROK Air Forces. The Russian bombers would fly just inside international waters and the ROK and USAF jets would scramble to intercept the bombers. It was not a surveillance flight as the Russian satellite passed over Korea every 45 minutes -- so these flights were simply nuisance flights to test the US and ROK resources dedicated during the Olympic games. For Osan F-4E and Kunsan AB F-16 aircraft, as well as ROKAF F-5Es from Kimpo and Osan, it was an ideal photo op as the slow-moving Tupolov bombers made perfect show pictures as the fighters escorted the bombers down the coast and then handed them off to the next group of aircraft. There was no real threat and it was simply a test to see the response times from radar intercept to aircraft contact.

In the Songtan area, the benefits were the immediate expansion of the tourism trade. For the previous five years, the government had invested in improving the tourism facilities throughout the nation in anticipation of this event. The Seoul Olympics were to show the world that Korea was no longer a backward country -- and change their perceptions of Korea and the Korean people as members of a thriving society. The culmination of this massive Public Relations campaign was the entry of Korea into the United Nations -- simultaneously with North Korea.

Copyright Infringement and Piracy: During this late 1980s, Korean was on the USTR (U.S. Trade Representative) "Watch List" because Korea was noted for its piracy of copyrights -- and exporting of the manufactured goods under copyright infringement to third world countries. There still was not a GATT treaty or World Trade Organization (WTO) at this time. Asia -- and Korea in particular -- was known as a rip-off capital with the police and other government agencies turning a blind-eye at home and a deaf-ear to international protests. Protectionism in Korea was the law -- and most large US companies were very reluctant to trust Korea's word.

However, to the GI shopping for bargains, it was a paradise. Gucchi bag rip-offs and "designer" clothes with fake trademark logos were everywhere. Downtown there were shops that specialized in copying tapes and later CDs. Ripoff copies of $200 computer programs could be had for $5. Though it was against the law to send any of this stuff stateside, a GI stationed in Korea during this period would have to be crazy to not avail himself of these bargains.

Regardless of this copyright infringement dispute, the ripoff designs continued to be sold at the Shinjang Shopping mall attracting military shoppers from all over. In response the base Postal Services increased their warnings of the sending of these items would be confiscated, if sent by US Postal services.

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Miracle of the Han The rapid growth of South Korea's economy in the late 1980s led to significant increases in exports and imports. In the wake of the 1988 Seoul Olympics, South Korea's trade surplus exceeded US$11 billion and foreign exchange revenue had increased sharply. Seoul's trade with communist countries surged in 1988. Trade with Eastern Europe was US$215 million, trade with China almost US$1.8 billion, and trade with the Soviet Union US$204 million.

In 1989 total exports grew to US$74.29 billion, and imports totaled US$67.21 billion. South Korea's annual trade exceeded US$100 billion for the first time in 1988, making it the world's tenth largest trading nation.

Because this there was a rapid expansion outside of Seoul as the need for factories grew. As a result, in the Pyongtaek area, there was a significant number of factories that were relocated to industrial parks specially constructed for expanding factories. (See 1990: "ROK offers Incentives for Songtan Industrial Complex (Mokgok-dong)")

The spin off is that with the increase in factories came an increase in jobs and need for apartments. Thus a construction boom occurred. At first it was small scale in reclaiming rice fields and swampy land near to the major highways for "low-rise structures" (10 story apartment complexes). However , soon large scale apartment complexes were planned throughout the Pyongtaek area.


(L) School Playground Activities (R) Sports Day (1980) (Songbuk Elementary School)


(L) School Playground Activities (R) Sports Day (Mothers' Volleyball) (1980) (Songbuk Elementary School) (NOTE: Notice the side buildings of the school)


(L) VWF Awards Ceremony (1981) (Songbuk Elementary School); (R) Songbuk Elementary School (1986) (Songbuk Elementary School) (NOTE: The central speakers platform between bleachers constructed in 1984)


Songbuk Elementary School (1988) (Songbuk Elementary School) (NOTE: The buildings are now three-story structure. The central speakers platform between bleachers constructed in 1984 and now has a frame for canvas. Picture taken near entrance with statue of Admiral Yi Sun-shin.)

Education There was a growing student population. For example, the Songtan Girls Middle School and Eunhwae Girls Middle School were founded in 1984. New facilities were built for the Songtan Girls High School in 1984, though the school had been in existence since the early 1970s. In the fill areas gouged out of Jisan Hill Park and Buraksan Mountain, plans were in work to establish the Jisan Elementary School and Songtan Middle School respectively in the early 1990s. In the early 1990s, the Kumbang Middle School (?) was built.

By the late 1980s, there was a growing middle-class who believed in the Confucian education ethic whereby education was the road to success could now afford to "splurge" on the education of their children. Unfortunately this education system was based on rote memory work to ultimately pass college entrance exams. (NOTE: In Korea in the 1980s, the government had invested in humanities instead of science disciplines in college in order to open colleges to the maximum numbers of students. However, this philosophy in the end caused the companies to simply look for the college name (i.e. Seoul National University) and not the degrees which were worthless. Companies trained their own people in house. As a result, the rush was to get into the top-ranked "name" colleges to insure employment in later life. It was not what you learned that was important, but what school you went to. As skewed as this was, the companies drove the college placement which in turn drove the high school college entrance exams -- which in turn drove the middle school students tests to get into the best high schools.)

There was an explosion of private schools (hagwons) for everything from piano to Taekwondo to calligraphy -- as well as in-home private tutors. The largest demand was for English education -- and numerous English hagwons (some using illegal part-time teachers -- airmen or dependents from Osan AB) sprouted up everywhere from Pyeongtaek to Suwon. Though the government periodically clamped down on the private tutoring, parents continued to pay large sums to college students to tutor their children in hopes of enabling them to enter prestigious colleges.

1990s

Early 1990s The image of the Koreans about themselves as members of the world community started to change. The term "globalization" became a catchword as every Korean used it -- sometimes in the most unusual ways. Being one of the four dragons of Asia, the man on the street started to change his perception of Korea. In the past, most Koreans would refer to Korea as a "poor country." After 1990, the usage slowly disappeared until the mid-1990s, when even the poorest of Koreans no longer referred to his country as a "poor country." Koreans started to view their nation as an equal to other powerful nations -- and no longer a third world country. This view point had all kinds of implications as Korean as a true middle-class started to emerge with consumer oriented tastes and demand for products and services that it viewed as reflecting their new status -- a car, a medium-sized apartment, etc.

In August 1991, South Korea joined the United Nations along with North Korea. The joint entry into the UN was a direct result of Roh Tae-woo's "Northern Openess" campaign which sought to open communications channels to start the process of reunification. In a major initiative on July 7, 1988, South Korean President Roh Tae Woo called for new efforts to promote exchanges, family reunification, inter-Korean trade, and contact in international fora. President Roh called on Korea's friends and allies to pursue contacts with the North, and said that the South intended to seek better relations with the U.S.S.R. and China.

Roh's initiative provided renewed momentum for dialogue. The two sides met several times at Panmunjom in an unsuccessful attempt to arrange a joint meeting of the two Korean parliaments. Meetings to discuss arrangements for prime ministerial-level talks led to a series of such meetings starting in 1990. In late 1991, the two sides signed the Agreement on Reconciliation, Non-aggression, Exchanges and Cooperation and the Joint Declaration on the Denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula. The Joint Declaration called for a bilateral nuclear inspection regime to verify the denuclearization of the peninsula. (Source: .)

As Korea became one of the four dragons of Asia in the early 1990s, other changes took place in Songtan as the new branch office of Pyeongtaek City Hall was opened in Ichung-dong. I-chung dong became identified with the "upscale" area of the town. The new Munhwakongwun Civic Center and a large Leports Park was built in the area. Behind the I-chung-dong Civic Center, the Kyungmoon College was situated.

Industrial Growth in Pyeongtaek area Korea was being faced with a multitude of problems in the 1990s. Its initiatives started in the 1980s to relocate the factories out of the high-cost areas of Seoul to the outlying provinces were essential in keeping Korean products competitive in pricing. The major problem was labor and wages. Labor's annual strikes and the spiralling labor costs -- due to tacked on benefits -- and declining productivity was making Korean products less attractive as exports. Many of Korea's efforts to create major factories overseas to bypass this problem met with more negatives than positives. In the EU the great fanfare of the Korean move to enter the European automotive market would result in the automotive plants closing and the ROK cutting their losses. In America, the new plants were being accused of racism in that they only hired cheap immigrant labor rather than local workers.

Then in 1992, Korea recognized China -- seen for its potential as a market for Korean products. However, what happened was that by 2000, the industrial parks created to move the small- and mid-sized factories had only had luke-warm success as the companies had moved to China to take advantage of the lower labor costs. However, at the same time, the Chinese were flooding the markets with cheap Chinese goods or imitation products. The opening of China had turned into a double-edged sword that was cutting both ways. (NOTE: In the early 1990s, the move to China as an option for cheap labor was not feasible as the ROK still maintained diplomatic relations with Taiwan. It would sever ties with Taiwan in 1992 because of the growing business pressure to expand into China. The chaebols were the first to test the waters in China -- but many found that the Chinese labor force was not up to the standards of Korea in any industry above the lowest of the low-tech industries. The small- and mid-sized companies didn't start relocating to China until the late 1990s because of the risks involved, but many were simply forced to relocate as labor costs were simply driving them out of business.)

From the 1960s the tendency of urbanization of metropolitan areas including Seoul began to appear. Ten cities - Incheon, Suwon, Seongnam, Uijeongbu, Anyang, Bucheon, Dongducheon, Songtan, Gwangmyeong -- were analyzed. The rapid growth of the ten metropolitan cities was a result of the national economic development based upon the expansion of employment opportunity. Along with this local area development was the influx of people and population growth. In Uijeongbu and Dongducheon, the growth remained stationary because of the North Korean security problems and the special environment of communities near the DMZ. In Seoul the growth slowed because of over expansion. In Incheon, Suwon, Bucheon, Gwangmyeong, Anyang, Seongnam; and Songtan, there was dynamic growth. Especially noted was Songtan which appeared to be the region promoting growth. (Source: An Analysis on the urban growth of 10 city in Seoul metropolitan area.)

Government policies were molded to attract companies -- especially foreign industries -- to resettle in designated industrial zones. Tax breaks and reduced land prices were incentives offered by the ROK government. (Source: Kyeonggi Province.)

The development of the land was under way under the Korea Land Development Corporation for the Songtan Industrial Complex in Mokgok-dong. Also involved were the government agencies for rural development as an alternative to farming due to the projected opening of the rice markets in 2004. Mostly small-middle sized Seoul factories relocated to the area because of the rising cost-of-living was driving its profits down. (NOTE: However, the overall results were disappointing after China opened up with the promise of cheap labor in the low-tech industries.)

One of the first to move was Shiheung Timber Co. which relocated its plant from Osan to its new Songtan plant in 1991. Another was the Kwang Dong Pharmaceutical Co. specializing in Oriental medicines which completed construction of its first factory facility in 1990 and its factory in 1992.

During this time period, Kyonggi Province started to work in expanding its industrial complexes concentrating on small- and medium-sized businesses in high-tech and technology-intensive industries. (Source: Invest Korea) In the immediate area, there was the:

• Eoyeon-Hansan Local Industrial Complex (Eoyeon-ri/Hansan-ri, Cheongbuk-myeon, Pyeontaek) 689,700 sq meters 1993-1998 55 tenants // Electronics, semi- conductors, electrical, (Source: KISC.)
  
  
  Eoyeon-Hansan Industrial Zone (2001). (Pyeongtaek City) (Source: Pyeongtaek History (CD), Pyeongtaek Si Sa)
  
  
• Chilgoe Local Industrial Complex (Chilkoi Local Industrial Complex) (Chilwon-dong/Chilgoe-dong, Pyeongtaek) 679,800 sq meters 1994-1997 25 tenants Automobile, machinery, Electronics (Source: KICOX.)
  
  
• Jangdang Local Industrial Complex (Jangdang-dong, Pyeongtaek -- Adjacent to Pyeongtaek-Songtan Local Industrial Complex) 148,500 sq meters 1994-1997 5 tenants // Automobile, electronic Machinery, F&B (Source: Industryland.)
  
  
• Pyeongtaek-Songtan Local Industrial Complex (Mokgok-dong, Pyeongtaek -- Adjacent to Jangdang Local Industrial Complex) 1,086,289 sq meters Completed - Unknown. (Source: Industryland.)
  
  
  Songtan Industrial Zone (2001). (Pyeongtaek City) (Source: Pyeongtaek History (CD), Pyeongtaek Si Sa)
  
  
• Pyeongtaek Local Industrial Complex (Segyo-dong, Pyeongtaek) 534,798 sq meters Completed - Unknown. (Source: Industryland.)
  
  

More companies established factories in the Songtan Industrial Area drawn by government policies to attract companies -- especially foreign industries -- to resettle in designated industrial zones. Tax breaks and reduced land prices were incentives by the ROK government. The advantage of the Pyongtaek/Songtan area was its close proximity to Seoul. Many companies were attracted to move out of Seoul to the "suburbs" to take advantage of reduced cost-of-living which in turn meant lower labor costs.

An example of one such company relocating to the area was the F.G.F. company manufacturing pants and shirts. (F.G.F'S SONGTAN FACTORY Since SBW D'urban Co., Ltd. Established a factory in the Kyungkido, Puchun area on March 1986, it has produced pants, shirts, blousons, etc., The company quickly grew and in October 1993, we bought land in the Kyungkido area and built the Songtan factory complex. The Songtan factory is greatly automated and has the latest apparel manufacturing facilities and Korea's best warehouse. The latest equipment has resulted in highly skilled technicians who have accumulated know-how and are dedicated to be the best in the world. It's location only 50minutes from Seoul ensures ready access to Korea's best capital market and aforesaid unlimited expansion possibilities. FACILITIES 6,082 square meters (factories-2,072 square meters, dormitory and cafeteria) PRODUCTION CAPABILITY pants 450/day shirts 450/day).

Another example is the ACE NET Inc. which also moved to the Songtan Industrial Area in 1993. It acquired the plant site in Aug 1990 and moved to the Songtan plant in Dec 1992. As part of the "special incentives" from the government, it was designated to offer special exemption from Military Service in Suwon City in Dec 1993. Another example was the Saelim Co. Ltd. that completed the construction of its plant in Sep 1992.

In the early 1990s, the Seohan West Coast Highway started construction with the first link from Sochon-Kunsan and work was commenced on the Pyeongtaek Grand Bridge. In the Songtan area, "high-rise" (10 story) apartments were going up. The reason for the low-height was that the land was reclaimed from rice paddies and swamp-land and could not bear the weight of true high-rise structures.

USFK Drawdown However, storm clouds were starting to appear in the US-ROK military relationships. In the US, the Nunn-Warner Initiative started the ball rolling to reduce the number of soldiers in Korea. For the Shinjang Shopping Mall area which was dependent on the military trade -- not only from the Osan AB area, but from bases/camps throughout Korea this was bad news.

America started to make plans to disassemble its forces. At first, the American forces were slated for a 25% reduction, but the South Korean government still feared North Korean intentions. Korea wished the American forces to stay.

Talks between the ROK Minister of National Defense and US Secretary of Defense were conducted. The treaty on creating JUSMAG-K was concluded. In January 1990, Secretary of Defense Dick Cheney announced the closing of three of the five United States air bases in South Korea and schedule the withdrawal of about two thousand air force personnel. One month later, Seoul accepted Washington's intention to withdraw about five thousand noncombatant troops from the American force of more than forty-three thousand soldiers in South Korea.

In April 1990, the Bush administration sent a troop reduction plan, based on the Nunn-Warner East Asia Strategy Evaluation Report, to the US Congress. At first, the American forces were slated for a 25% reduction, but the South Korean government still feared North Korean intentions and was opposed to the 'high' rate of reduction. It preferred instead a more gradual rate of reduction. The Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) was renegotiated in 1990 with a significant increase in the Korean portion of the defense expenditures.

Seoul accepted Washington's intention to withdraw about 5,000 noncombatant troops from the American force of more than 43,000 soldiers in South Korea as part of Phase One of its plan. At the end of 1990, 39,317 American military remained in Korea. The original plan called for 2,000 Air Force and 5,000 non-combat ground troops would be withdrawn from Korea starting in 1991 and completed by 1993. At the end of 1990, 39,317 American military remained in Korea. Phase Two of the original plan planned to reduce the troop strength in Korean to about 30,000 between 1994-1995. Unfortunately, the North Korean nuclear crisis that pushed the peninsula to the brink of war stopped the implementation. This crisis shelved any further troop reduction plans and since that time there have been no changes to the manning in Korea.

(SITE NOTE: After 1993, the troop strength remained at about 37,000 without further talks of troop withdrawals until 2003 when the US in frustration with its "reluctant ally" unilaterally removed 3,600 men of the 2d Bde 2d ID to Iraq ostensibly as part of its move to relocate its troops south of the Han River. Moves of troops continued as units relocated stateside from the DMZ area and functions of units were combined under a streamlined "Unit of Action" (UEX) or functions were combined.)

USFK Downsizes Korean Workforce In 1990, the USFK sought to implement the Nunn-Warner Initiative which would have resulted in significant reductions in troops strengths. The majority of these troop reductions would have been along the DMZ and the ROK begged the US to withdraw its troops in a much more gradual time table. The impacts to the Osan population was a loss of only 1,000 personnel, but when one considers the dependents the impact to the community, the loss was significant. Then in 1993, Kim Il-sung of North Korea brought the US-ROK to the point of an open shooting war. Kim Il-sung redefined the word, "brinksmanship." The nuclear crisis has dragged on till 2005 -- with nothing gained except that North Korea had more time to make more nuclear weapons. (NOTE: The losses to Osan AB were frozen and has remained static even with the new added numbers from Yongsan who were to move to Osan AB starting in 2005.)

In 1994, the USFK throughout the peninsula started to reduce its Korean workforce -- as a direct result of reductions from the Nunn-Warner Initiative. The USFK-wide move was to terminate long-time employees over retirement age to reduce the work force. At the base level, the bases started to downsize its Korean staff through attrition. As they were retired, they were no fills. In addition, Korean civilian workers were being offered early retirement. The base manning was shrinking in size. The hidden issue was the retirement pay and severance compensation. The "retirement system" for the local national workers is one whereby a pay differential is contributed to the paycheck of the employee every month. Therefore, when the worker retires, no further payments are given. More and more jobs were being converted from U.S. nationals to local nationals as "temporary" Non-Appropriated Fund (NAF) positions to preclude retirement payments. However, in the area of severance pay, there was a large dispute over the amounts owed. The amounts demanded were higher than the USFK felt that they were required to pay. In the end, the retirees left and a negotiated settlement was arrived at.

However, this downsizing did not come without some angry protests from those being "retired." Protests were staged outside the Osan Main Gate as it was at USFK bases Korea-wide. At times, these demonstrations became aggressive. According to the Pyeongtaek History, on 24 Jan 1994, an incident report was filed with the Pyeongtaek police over individuals being "short-changed" pay due. 57 individuals were supposedly terminated. Those with short-term service were relocated to other positions, but 33 long time employees were released. The dispute was over the back-wages for these employees. No other details were available. Outcome of the incident is unknown. (Source: Pyeongtaek City History CD, "Pyeongtaek Si Sa.")


Songtan Bar. (1990) (Pyeongtaek City) (Source: Pyeongtaek History (CD), Pyeongtaek Si Sa)


Songtan bar area. (1990) (Pyeongtaek City) (Source: Pyeongtaek History (CD), Pyeongtaek Si Sa)

The Changing Bar Scene of Songtan According to the Pyeongtaek History, 1990 was a turning point for the bars of Songtan. At that time the bars could no longer attract Korean bar girls to the clubs as they could earn more than double (or triple) the amounts in Korean clubs in Seoul. All that was left in the Songtan bars were the aging Korean bar girls. The bar owners found it difficult to attract younger girls to work in their bars. In addition, the bar owners complained that they could not earn a living given the rising costs of paying for bar girls as well as a downturn from the free-spending days of the past. As a result, the bars turned to the importation of Russian and Filipina women to work in the bars. At first the bar owners attempted to treat these foreign bar girls as Korean bar girls, but there were too many cultural problems. The cost of importing these girls required upfront money placing a further financial burden on the bar owners.

Pyeongtaek Police reported problems with these women due to communication difficulties -- in that they could not speak Korean and were frequently caught in unlawful acts. The Korean police started getting complaints about these foreign women as they failed to pay their bills and created disturbances due their being drunk and disorderly in public. During Team Spirit, these women also "disappeared" from the bars with their new-found American boyfriends -- creating a runaway illegal alien problem involving the Immigration authorities. (Source: Pyeongtaek City History CD, "Pyeongtaek Si Sa.")

(NOTE: The Russian women appeared in the Korean bars first and then the Songtan bars joined in importing these women. The Russians had already established their presence in Pusan with the taking over of the "Little Texas" area -- and also the appearance of the Russian "mafia" in the area as well. The Filipinas came next and were preferred as they spoke English. By Aug 1999, the Pyeongtaek area had 21 towns employing these foreign "entertainers" for a total of 343 persons.)

It was at this point the bar owners increased the going rate for sex services to bring the camptown rates for sex (prostitution fees) more in line with what was paid in the Korean bars. This is where the Korean Bar Owners Association turned from being bar owners into brothel managers. The old use of bar fines to offset the loss of income for a girl who left early became an open "ticket" for prostitution. The scene was being set up for a disastrous confrontation. In a few years, these women would be the center of a human trafficking scandal that rocked the USFK in July 2002 when a FOX affiliate released an expose on the seedier side of life in Songtan and Euijongbu. (See A-town and Prostitution for details on this sordid area.)

Osan Standard for Off-base Establishments (1992)

This guide set the guidelines for off-limits violations. It included the requirement to have any FEMALE employee submit their photo to the base. Activists took offense with this in 2005, but it actually was nothing more than a VD check requirement for the hospital to identify bar girls for monthly checks. In 2005, the ROK media and NGO activist groups attempted to make this book an issue, but it bombed. (See Korea Times, Controversy Rises Over US Military Jurisdiction on Local Bar District, 17 Mar 2005) (SeeA-town Pages)

Prostitution in Songtan In the spring of 1992, a Korean Protestant minister who serves the prostitute community in Songt'an commented that prostitution and related businesses support 60% of Songt'an's economy. (Conversations with Rev. Han, Songtan City, May 1992 by Katharine H.S. Moon.)

On the surface, simple market economics--"where the boys are"-- has dictated the number of prostitutes and high density areas of military prostitution. When troops are withdrawn or redeployed, as in the early 1970s, the women and other kijich'on residents pick up their wares and move to where the soldiers resettle (chapter 3). Since 1990, Songt'an's R&R business life has been growing because the Eighth Army headquarters, which had been in Seoul since the permanent stationing of U.S. troops in Korea, was scheduled to move in. I felt the heartbeat of this kijich'on throbbing with vigor when I visited Songt'an several times throughout the spring of 1992. It is the only kijich'on that is booming with loud music and thriving with business transactions even in the daytime. Its nightclub alleys, marketplace, and souvenir shops are filled with the hustle and bustle of Koreans and Americans, whereas most of the camptowns in the Paju area, that had housed the highest concentration of U.S. troops from 1953 to 1971--it was called the"GI's Kingdom" (Source: Yangk'i ko hom, pp. 74-75) --now resemble sleepy shantytowns in the day and come to life slowly only at night. Besides Osan and American Town in Kunsan, Tongduch'on and Uijongbu are the two major R&R areas left; the latter two cater mostly to the 2d ID, the only U.S. army division remaining in Korea since 1971. Camptown residents and former prostitutes themselves acknowledge the significance of the U.S. troop count in their lives. They noted in conversations with me that the number of kijich'on prostitutes declined substantially in the late 1970s as a reaction to the Carter administration's crusade to withdraw U.S. troops completely from South Korea. But Koreans have also noted that with the Reagan administration's increase in the number of troops, beginning in 1984, the number of prostitutes also increased. (Source: Editorial Board, Tosô, Publishers, Sarang űi P'umasi,(Love for Sale), p. 94). (SOURCE: Sex Among Allies: Military Prostitution in U.S./Korea Relations, by Katharine H.S. Moon.)











(Source: The following photos are from Baraboda.net: Lee Hak-Jun. Lee Hak-Jun took these photos of the back alley track area in the Shinjang area in May 1993. (Nikon FM2, 35~105mm f3.5~4.5, vivitar 75~300 f4.5~5.6) Mr. Lee wrote in May 2005, "One of my intention to take and collect photos is to record history with my own eyes. I'm quite pleased to receive your letter, that my photo collection can be of a little help to your work.")

Mid 1990s

Songtan City merges with Pyeongtaek City (May 1995) On 10 May 1995, Songtan-shi, Pyeongtaek-shi and Pyeongtaek gun were abolished and urban agricultural Pyeongtaek-shi established by Law No. 4048. The law on established five urban agricultural cities, including Pyeongtaek-shi, Kyonggi-do. The merger expanded Pyeongtaek to an area of 87,168 acres.

Unlike America, public opinion plays a great role in politics. The fact that the merger came about without protest speaks loudly that the Korean populace approved of the measure. Songtan merger was supposedly to take advantage of the larger tax base of Pyongtaek when the two combined -- but others claim it was to attempt to rid itself of its reputation as a "camptown" (kijich'on). After the merger, new schools and infrastructure were added to the area to benefit the people. As one of the five urban-agricultural cities in the nation, the area would qualify to a multitude of programs aimed at growth of agriculture in the area. It is at this time that Pyeongtaek was starting to concentrate on its agricultural industries -- flower growing, chicken and dairy farms and rice production, with attempts to get the farmers to grow specialized crops -- or at least to diversify their crops instead of only being dependent on rice farming. (NOTE: After the signing of the GATT agreement, Korea had a decade to wean itself away for subsidized rice and open the gates to direct foreign rice sales. As such, programs were initiated to transition the rice farmers into specialized crops -- such as horticulture.)

The population of Pyeongtaek in 1992 was 289,966. In 1994, estimates of the population of Pyeongtaek was 310,000. Other sources placed the population of Songtan at about 152,000 and Pyeongtaek at 142,000. (Source: Industryland: Jangdang Industrial complex.)

However, the population figures also reflected the foreign workers. In Korea, there was a growing reluctance to engage in the 3D jobs -- dirty, dangerous and demeaning. As such farm communities were dying as the younger population moved to the cities to take up "clean hands" jobs. In fact, even the males in the country were finding it difficult to find mates -- with some trying to import ethnic Koreans from China to marry. Unfortunately, many of these "brides" simply ran away after marrying their farmer spouse. (NOTE: If one goes into the countryside anywhere in the Kyonggi Province, one will see foreign workers from Bangladesh, Pakistan, Thailand and Russia everywhere.)

At the same time, National, Regional and Local Industrial Zones were started throughout the Kyonggi Province. In the Songtan area, the Mokgok and Jangdang Local Industrial complexes were initiated. Regional Industrial complexes were also started in Anjung 1 and Anjung 2. National Industrial Complexes in Ansan were initiated.

Songtan and Pyeongtaek joined (10 May 1995). (Pyeongtaek City) (Source: Pyeongtaek History (CD), Pyeongtaek Si Sa)

In Mar 1994, Songtan City approached Aomori City via CLAIR (Council of Local Authorities for International Relations) with a view to friendship between the 2 cities. In Nov 1994, the Mayor of Aomori and a group of 20 delegates visited Songtan, and concluded an agreement to carry out educational and cultural exchanges. However, in May 1995, Songtan city and adjoining Pyongtaek City and county agreed to amalgamate as Pyongtaek City. In Aug 1995, the Mayor of Aomori led a party on a visit to Pyongtaek and the friendship agreement was continued with Pyongtaek.

Flooding (Aug 1994) In the summer of 1994, extreme flooding occurred in Songtan (Source: DFO #1994-085). Flooding encompassed Pyongtaek City, Kyonggi Province; Taean, South Chungchong Province; Yong-in, Kyonggi Province; Songtan City, Kyonggi Province. The flooding was due to heavy rainfal from 26 Aug - 30 Aug 1994 for a duration of 5 days. 5 people died and 2,000 people displaced. It was declared a Class 1 in Severity with 200 hectares flooded. (Source: 1995 Flood Archive)


(L) Songbuk Elementary School Main Gate (Jul 1992) (NOTE: This is looking from the street into the school grounds.) (R) Sports Day (1992) (Songbuk Elementary School)


(L) Teacher lecturing with students at wooden desks (1992) (Songbuk Elementary School); (R) Songbuk Elementary School (1993) (Songbuk Elementary School)
(NOTE: Notice right-hand building four-stories and left is three-stories.)


(L) Songbuk Elementary School Sports Day Fan Dance (R) Ssirum (1995) (Songbuk Elementary School)
(NOTE: A separate two-story building was constructed with bottom floor used for Ssirum training.)


(L) Songbuk Elementary School (1996) (Songbuk Elementary School) (NOTE: Apartments are across the street from the playground.); (R) Songbuk Elementary School (1998) (Songbuk Elementary School)


Songbuk Elementary School (1999) (Songbuk Elementary School)


Education After Songtan merged with Pyeongtaek, schools and infrastructure benefits started to appear. The coeducational Songtan Middle School in Jisan-dong was built in 1994. (NOTE: Before that there was the traditional segregated midddle-high school (only girls) like the Songtan Girls' Middle School founded in 1980 and the Songtan Girls' High School founded in 1984.)

In 1996, the Seojong Elementary School was renamed the Songtan Elementary School. In the 1990s, the Hyomyeon Middle School and High School expanded to meet the growing population needs in the Seojong-ni area following the new construction of apartments.


Open Market (1994) (Mike)


Main Gate with ROKTraffic Cops (1994) (Mike)

Shinjang Mall designated Special Tourism Zone The Shinjang Mall area was designated a Special Tourism Zone in May 1997. The area covers 490 sq meters. The Shinjang Shopping Mall area businesses included restaurants. As a Special Tourism Zone it was granted special incentives to set up operations in the area. (NOTE: Itaewon (Sep 1997) and Tongduchon (Jan 1997) were also designated a Special Tourism Zone. These areas are known as small scale shopping meccas for American military. Other major tourist areas were designated in 1994.) Korea at the time was seeking to improve the infrastructure (tourist hotels) and provide the organization to commit funds for the upcoming Visit Korea promotions of 2001 and World Cup Games in 2002. Local officials through the Provincial governors identified areas designated as tourism zones -- national parks, natural scenic spots, recreational facilities, etc. The government would then provide tax incentives to areas designated for revitalization -- and commit funds on a priority basis. There were also efforts to attract foreign investment to fund these improvements.

It can be seen that the ROK government was seeking to recognize these "niche markets" of high volume sales to the US military -- while at the same time distancing itself from the "camptown" image. (See "1997: Songtan Designated Special Tourism Zone.") (NOTE: The media has erroneously equated the "Songtan Special Tourism Association" to the "Songtan Bar Owners Association" -- though many bar owners would be association members if they operated in the Shinjang Special Tourism Zone. Actually a more correct association would be to the "Songtan Chamber of Commerce.") The population of Pyeongtaek in 1997 was 348,012.


Opening of Songtan Special Tourism Zone (1997)

A Special Tourism Zone designates an area planned as a hub of international tourist attractions in accordance with Article 67 of the Tourism Promotion Law. The head of a city/provincial government may recommend one area among tourist complexes or tourist sites in his or her region that possesses great potential as a centre of international tourism. Restrictions on businesses operating within Special Tourism Zones are eased to facilitate the development of tourism resources. In