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NY Korea Center project may finally be getting off the ground after 2-year hiatus

February 2, 2015

The proposed Korea Center in New York

The New York Korea Center project may finally be getting off the ground after a two-year hiatus.

The proposed cultural center, on a lot located between Lexington Ave. and Park Ave., started construction in Dec. 2012 but struggled to find a construction company to take on the project.

The Korean American Construction Association of New York has reportedly put forth six potential Korean company candidates to Korean Cultural Service New York.

As of last year, five construction bids for the project — which was slated for an August 2014 completion — fell through with worries that the center had low profitability and complicated architecture.

Korea Center will be an eight-story, 33,000 square foot facility, a hub for Hallyu and Korean culture.

A KCS source said the inquiries did not begin as a result of a push by the South Korean Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, which is in charge of center construction.

KCS has directed questions about the status of the center toward organizers in Korea. In October last year, Korean Assemblyman Jung Byung-gook criticized local Korean Americans and said they should stop waiting for an answer from South Korea and instead find a solution of their own.

Kim Young-jin, KACANY president, said plenty of New York-based Korean companies are capable of doing the job but that, should one company not be enough, a consortium should be planned to get the work done.

In May 2014, a $28 million addition to the project’s budget was proposed by the culture ministry and the Ministry of Strategy and Finance.

- In New York and Chicago, two Korea Centers on the wait

2 Comments

Edward

February 5, 2015 at 3:31 PM

Wow… this center makes ours in Miracle Mile look like crap.

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