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| The Park Yoo-chun Cherry Blossom Road in Gyeyang-gu, Incheon / Korea Time file |
By Kang Seung-woo
Local district offices are in a quandary over whether to remove the names of scandal-hit celebrities from facilities in their jurisdictions.
The names of these stars once promised streams of tourists and income. But as people learn of the shocking allegations that a slew of entertainers illicitly recorded sex videos and shared the obscene material in mobile chatrooms, the regional offices' celebrity marketing is under scrutiny.
One example is Park Yoo-chun Cherry Blossom Road in Incheon's Gyeyang-gu. The road was named in 2013 by a local volunteer group funded by Park's fan club, and is decorated with Park's murals.
Park, an actor and a member of boy band JYJ, faces arrest over allegations that he took illegal drugs together with his former fiancee Hwang Ha-na, the now-arrested granddaughter of Namyang Dairy Products founder.
As the allegations grow, there are calls from the community for the 1.8-kilometer road to be renamed.
In response to the growing complaints, Gyeyang-gu Office said it held a discussion with the volunteer group recently about the issue.
The office and the group remain cautious because Park's case is still pending.
According to the volunteer group, it is considering removing murals and the plaque indicating the Park Yoo-chun Road by August, saying after observing how the situation develops, it will talk with Park's fan club about whether to get rid of these.
Seungri Forest is also facing backlash. It is located in a park next to an elementary school in Yeoksam-dong, Gangnam-gu. There is also a high school 100 meters from the wooded area.
In December 2015, his Chinese fan club spent 5 million won ($4,380) to create the area with assistance from Gangnam-gu Office, with over 200 trees being planted.
However, given that the 29-year-old, whose real name is Lee Seung-hyun, is accused of providing prostitutes to investors, embezzling company funds and sharing illegally recorded sex videos, some are expressing negative opinions that it is inappropriate to retain his name there.
However, the district office has yet to reach a conclusion over the issue.
Separately from Seungri Forest, Gangnam-gu has another "forest" named after another K-pop singer, Roy Kim.
Kim, 25, is also accused of uploading sexually explicit photographs in a KakaoTalk mobile group chat room. Police booked him earlier this month on suspicion of distributing obscene material.
In the wake of the sex scandal, the district office removed a wooden plaque with Kim's name from the forest and cleared away a red mailbox engraved with the words "To Roy Kim" as well.
In addition, the name of Choi Jong-hoon, a former member of F.T. Island, has been removed from K-Star Road, which stretches from the Galleria Department Store to Apgujeong Rodeo Street in Gangnam-gu.
The 29-year-old Choi was booked recently as well for uploading obscene footage on group chats and attempting to offer bribes to a police officer after being caught driving under the influence in February 2016.
