The primary focus of the paper is understanding the role that social enterprises play and/or should play in ensuring that urban centers are sustainable. The research makes use of the City of Anyang in the province of Gyeonggi, South Korean, to obtain primary data from select participants through questionnaires in order to identify the role that has so far been played by social enterprises, and the expectations that people have placed on social enterprises. The city of Anyang was identified as a suitable subject of study because besides an urbanized place where diversity in data could be achieved and thus be more representative, it also is not lopsided in terms of disadvantages or advantages. Rather, it has a balance between its negative externalities and positive factors such as being well-planned and having coordinated network of both public and private systems.