• Journal of the Korean Regional Science Association
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• v.40 no.2
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• pp.3-19
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• 2024

The purpose of this study is to analyze the impact of attracting a university campus on the local economies of small and medium-sized cities, focusing on changes in local commercial neighborhoods(such as the number of startups, closures, and stores counts). For this study, a Difference-in-Difference(DID) analysis was used to compare the period before and after the attraction of university campuses in four local small and medium-sized cities. These include the Yangsan Campus of Pusan National University, the Jincheon Campus of Woosuk University, the Taean Campus of Hanseo University, and the Dangjin Campus of Hoseo University. The comparison was based on the number of startups, closures, and store counts, using local data provided by the Ministry of the Interior and Safety. The main findings of the study are as follows. First, attracting a university campus has a positive impact on the number of startups, both spatially and temporally. The spatial factors for the number of closures and stores showed a decrease, while the interaction terms representing the period before and after attracting the university campus all indicated an increase. Second, the number of startups in cultural and food-related sectors increase, reflecting the new demand created by attracting the university campus. However, there was also an increase in the number of closures, indicating rapidly changing consumption trends among university students. Third, physical environmental factors such as the number of building floors, land use zoning, and officially assessed land prices have a significant impact on the number of startups, closures, and stores. This supports the assertion that attracting university campus have a positive impact on the revitalization of local commercial neighborhoods.