"I waited nearly two hours to get a seat, but there was trash piled up right next to it."
At 10 p.m. on June 28, the outdoor dining street near Jongno 3-ga in Seoul was packed. Although it was Sunday night with the weekend drawing to a close, the alley was so crowded that empty seats were hard to find. Outdoor tables were filled with customers, while people waiting for seats moved up and down the alley. On one side, garbage bags filled with food waste, disposable cups, and liquor bottles were piled high. Cigarette butts, vomit, and other filth were scattered across the ground. Some people quickened their pace, frowning at the stench.
Mr. Cho, 26, who wandered around for a long time searching for a seat, said, "I finally found the one remaining spot, but it was right next to where trash is dumped, so I didn't want to sit there, but I had no choice." He added, "The tables were pressed up against the road, so exhaust fumes came in every time a car passed, and there were people smoking right next to me, which made it uncomfortable."
Jongno 3-ga, which has emerged as an "outdoor dining mecca" among people in their 20s and 30s, is suffering from various daily-life complaints, including illegal trash dumping, noise, and pedestrian inconvenience. Its popularity has grown to the point where online platforms sharing outdoor dining information nationwide have appeared, making it a hotspot where empty seats are hard to find not only on weekends but also on weekdays. However, critics point out that as the number of visitors increases, so does the inconvenience to residents.
This inconvenience is also confirmed by actual complaint statistics. According to Jongno-gu, illegal trash dumping complaints filed across the district from May to September last year reached 974. This year, 340 complaints were filed from last month through June 26. That averages five to six per day.
The fatigue felt by residents is even greater. Kim Kyu-chul, 62, who has lived on Donhwamun-ro 9-ga-gil for 12 years, said, "It's welcome that the commercial district is becoming livelier as tourists increase, but residents' living environment has deteriorated just as much." He appealed, "I am under no small amount of stress in my daily life because of the trash odors that continue into the late night, as well as street smoking, cigarette butts, public urination, and noise."
Earlier, Jongno-gu set out to establish order in the outdoor dining area through its "Donhwamun-ro 11-gil Coexistence Street Creation Project" last year. It converted the existing two-way, two-lane road into a one-way, single-lane road to secure pedestrian space, and required each venue to install only one row of outdoor tables. It also mandated road occupancy permits and outdoor business reports, setting standards for street operations.
However, the scene encountered during reporting was far from the system. Some venues continued operating by setting up tables beyond the permitted zone and onto the walkway. Some people had to step down onto the road to move around, avoiding the sidewalk. On the narrow one-way road, vehicles repeatedly passed just barely next to pedestrians. At a nearby crosswalk, vehicles passed even while the walk signal was on, with pedestrians seen hesitating to move.
For this reason, some point out that the issue is not simply trash or noise, but that the overall way outdoor dining operates needs to be overhauled. The reasoning is that as the commercial district grows, problems with pedestrian safety, traffic, and sanitation may grow along with it.
Jongno-gu conducts on-site inspections and guidance at least twice a week during the tourism peak seasons of April to June and September to November. However, it explains that there are limits to operating the system because it is difficult to manage all venues at all times during periods when visitors are concentrated. A Jongno-gu Office official said, "During weekends or peak seasons when visitors flock in, there are cases at some venues where business is conducted beyond the permitted range." The official added, "We will continue on-site monitoring and inspections to ensure that operating standards are observed."
Experts point out that one-time crackdowns alone make it difficult to solve the problem. Koh Joon-ho, a professor of urban engineering at Hanyang University, said, "If disorderly business is left unchecked, customers may appear to increase in the short term, but in the long term, the street's image will be damaged, which could lead to a decline in visitors." He said, "It is important for merchant associations and local governments to create a sustainable operating system together."
He added, "The perception that maintaining order is not regulation but an investment in growing the commercial district must take root among merchants," and continued, "Only by steadily managing sanitation, pedestrian safety, and traffic order can the local commercial district ultimately survive for the long term."
