Speech of Former Kaohsiung Mayor—Frank Shieh

To be the only one, Kaohsiung needs to be herself to become a sparkling international city. Of course, this is easier said than done. I am grateful that Kaohsiung citizens have given me the chance to lead a great team to work on our goal and make Kaohsiung the Only One.

It has been my goal to shorten the distance between the north and the south and build identification between the city and the countryside. I wan to find the characteristics of Kaohsiung and enhance her competitiveness. Obviously, Kaohsiung owns lots of natural advantages: a populous city located by the mountain and the ocean, an internationally recognized harbor and a lovely river. These advantages can help Kaohsiung become the only one ocean capital city. What this city needs are concrete plans and actions. Postponed constructions and messy administrative system in the city government need to be resolved as soon as possible. Whether Kaohsiung can move forward depends on our resolution to start a number of important infrastructures. Infrastructures usually take years to complete; as a result, few politicians are willing to invest their efforts on infrastructures. As the mayor of Kaohsiung City, I will start working on the infrastructures to build a great city that really caters for the needs of the residents.  

Bearing the goal of making Kaohsiung a great city in mind, the city government finally started long-delayed construction of the Kaohsiung Rapid Transit on October 24, 2001. Transportation is definitely the key to the development of a city. Due to the delay of the project, the development in Kaohsiung had been sluggish. Now, with the prospect of a more convenient transportation in the foreseeable future, the KRT will bring prosperity to the area along its route and improve living quality for Kaohsiung residents.

As for the future of the Sanduo Shopping District, one of the most important shopping districts in Kaohsiung, the R8 stop of the KRT is located right here. R8 is also the end of the beautiful Formosa Boulevard which is lined with four stops (R8~R11) of the KRT. R11 is the stop which connects the Kaohsiung train station and the Taiwan High-Speed Rail. Obviously, the Sanduo Shopping District and the area around the Formosa Boulevard is going to be a highly intensive business area once the KRT is completed. We plan to make the Formosa Boulevard become the Avenue des Champs Elysees in Kaohsiung. Café, florists, newspapers stands and so on will be set up on the Formosa Boulevard. In the future, residents will be able to enjoy a beautiful environment, easy shopping, and convenient city life in this area.

The Sanduo Shopping District at R8 will be a proud demonstration of successful cooperation between the government and the private business. An exit of R8 is thoughtfully integrated into business building and department stores in this area, so that the KRT can easily take consumers to their shopping places. R8 also connects the Formosa Boulevard to the Welcome Boulevard which leads to the airport. As a result, the Sanduo Shopping District will be the pivot of business and transportation, surrounded by Business and Trade Park, Software Technology Park and the Kaohsiung Harbor. Despite the ups and downs during the construction of the KRT, I believe that pains we experience while carrying out the KRT project will bring out the beauty of Kaohsiung and a prosperous future.

The Shin Kuang Pier near the Sanduo Shopping District is a great location to immerse in the atmosphere of the ocean capital. Ocean is no doubt one of the most important assets of Kaohsiung. In the past, Kaohsiung residents could not enjoy the great view of the ocean and harbor because of the soaring walls along the harbor. In recent years, the city government has been working on tearing down these walls and renovating the harbor areas. Kaohsiung residents can now feel closely connected to the ocean and the charm of their city.

In the past, the Love River and the Chenchen River were eyesores of the city. However, after years of hard work of the city government, pipes for sewage water have increased from 6% to 45.07%. Since less waste water goes directly into the rivers, these rivers are much cleaner than before. Without the resolution and determination of the city government to build these infrastructures, there is no hope for Kaohsiung to be a great city.

Many people agree that Kaohsiung has become a beautiful city. It is a result of hard work from the great team in the city government. Kaohsiung now has her own style and identification. In addition to convenient transportation and clean rivers, special designed lampposts and lights will be set up to light up a beautiful night view of the harbor city.

As more constructions are completed, Kaohsiung residents become increasingly proud of their own city. Moreover, being the host of the 2009 World Games will be a landmark in the development of Kaohsiung. It has been years since Taiwan was chosen to host international games. Therefore, hosting the second biggest world games not only promotes the international status of Taiwan, but also proves the significance of Kaohsiung. Hosting the 2009 World Games will stimulate the development of Kaohsiung and a great reward to the hard work of the Kaohsiung city government.

Hosting the world games will boost the development in not only the Sanduo Shopping District but also other fields in Kaohsiung. How to make the 2009 World Games a success is a huge challenge. Much work needs to be done before the games, such as building stadiums and games related facilities, improving transportation, managing tourism resources, and enhancing living standard. All there are goals of the city government in the next few years. We strongly believe that we will complete every project in time and present the world a splendid city.

The Sanduo Shopping District plays an essential role in the development of transportation and business in Kaohsiung. A great city needs a vision and actions. With the long-term urban planning, a prosperous future of the Sanduo Shopping District is not a dream. We will be open to the suggestions and advice from the public so that we can build a shopping district that caters for the need of the public. Only by doing so can the Sanduo Shopping District and Kaohsiung City move forward steadily.