Seoul is pushing ahead with the construction of a pet theme park and a public animal crematory facility (memorial hall) in Yeoncheon County, Gyeonggi Province, with a goal of completion by 2027. The city estimates that operating both facilities will generate an annual operating profit of approximately 3.6 billion won, as reported on the 31st. The pet theme park is expected to generate 3 billion won, while the memorial hall is projected to earn 600 million won.
However, local governments that opened similar facilities several years ago have reportedly experienced accumulated deficits. There are concerns that Seoul's plans may be out of touch with reality.
◇Seoul builds facilities in Yeoncheon County due to land expenses and concerns over resident opposition
Seoul has decided to build the pet theme park and memorial hall in the Imjingang Tourist Area of Yeoncheon County, Gyeonggi Province, last year. The pet theme park will be established on a site of approximately 120,000 square meters, making it the largest in the metropolitan area. Facilities will include ▲ a pet-friendly campground with caravans, glamping, and auto camping ▲ a swimming pool for dogs ▲ a dog playground and training center ▲ a pet grooming salon. The memorial hall will be constructed on a site of about 5,000 square meters near the theme park.
About 900,000 households (approximately 22.2%) of all households in Seoul own pets. Additionally, over 130,000 pets die each year. This project aims to accommodate the expected increase in pet-owning households and provide facilities where citizens can spend leisure time and mourn their pets near Seoul.
The location for the pet theme park and memorial hall is about 57 kilometers from Seoul City Hall in a straight line. It takes over two hours to reach by car. The city chose to build these facilities in Yeoncheon County because it is challenging to secure such a large area within manageable expenses in the city. Furthermore, the memorial hall is a type of burial facility, which has also raised concerns about local opposition.
Seoul officials announced their plans in January last year, stating, "There are only two public pet theme parks in the metropolitan area, in Yeoju and Osan, which is quite insufficient, and there are none in northern Gyeonggi Province." Yeoncheon County sought private corporations to invest in the Imjingang Tourist Area but faced difficulties, leading them to collaborate with Seoul.
◇Pet hotels charge up to 110,000 won per night, and pet funerals will charge a maximum of 1,010,000 won
Seoul plans to invest a total of 56.2 billion won, including 47.685 billion won for the pet theme park and 8.592 billion won for the memorial hall.
Once the facilities are completed, they are expected to open in 2028. Seoul plans to charge users fees for using the facilities. For the caravan campground, the plan is to charge 160,000 to 340,000 won for a day's use for four people. The swimming pool for pets will charge 12,000 to 40,000 won for large dogs and 11,000 to 25,000 won from their owners for each visit. The pet hotel will have daily fees ranging from 25,000 to 110,000 won.
The memorial hall plans to charge between 120,000 and 290,000 won for cremating each pet. To conduct the "premium funeral," which includes an odongnamu coffin, an urn, a frame, and flower offerings, the cost will range from 520,000 to 1,010,000 won per pet. Additional fees for storage and transportation will apply separately.
Seoul expects that by charging these fees, the pet theme park can generate annual revenue of 4.335 billion won. The operating expenses are estimated at 1.337 billion won, which means it could achieve an operating profit of 2.998 billion won.
Operating the memorial hall is expected to cost 810 million won, with projected revenue of 1.404 billion won. The estimated annual operating profit is 594 million won. The combined annual operating profit for both facilities is about 3.6 billion won. In addition, Seoul plans to offset operating costs with local government tax revenues.
◇Local governments that built pet theme parks shifting to private management due to expense burdens, facing criticism of "an annual deficit of 1.3 billion won"
So far, other local governments that have built facilities similar to pet theme parks have reported significant expense burdens, leading to operational difficulties. Some have entrusted the management of their facilities to private entities.
The pet theme park was first established by Uiseong County in North Gyeongsang Province in 2021, followed by similar facilities set up consecutively in Osan City and Ulsan City.
A representative from a local government with such facilities said, "Given the public nature (of the offering), I didn't have high expectations, but I thought it could at least be sustainable." They noted, "After we opened, we realized that labor costs, facility maintenance fees, and management expenses are substantial, leading us to incur deficits every year." Another local official mentioned, "During the summer, there are considerable visitors to the swimming pool for pets, but otherwise, there are virtually no citizens using this facility."
Some are considering the closure of their pet theme parks. The mayor of Osan, Lee Kwon-jae, remarked during a forum in July, "If we incur a deficit of 1.3 billion won per year, is this something the city should be managing?" He also mentioned that, "There are operators willing to pay 2 billion won a year for the land use." The establishment of this facility cost a budget of 32 billion won.