This study investigates the prioritization in the operation and project implementation of South Korean local cultural foundations using the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP), a multi-criteria decision-making methodology. The purpose of this research is to provide insights into the decision-making processes of local cultural foundation personnel, grounded in the theoretical implications of institutionalism, including historical institutionalism, sociological institutionalism, and rational choice institutionalism. The contributions of this research are twofold: first, it demonstrates the applicability of AHP in multi-layered decision-making analysis, contributing to academic discourse on institutionalism and cultural administration and policy; and second, it offers practical insights to facilitate decision-making processes suitable for the environmental, situational, and conditional contexts of South Korean local cultural foundations. This study is anticipated to be academically and practically beneficial in analyzing decision-making for the promotion of regional culture in South Korea.