16 News from Northeast Asia Regional Editor The Region Gentrification Ilhong Ko

Deregulation policy and gentrification in Chuo Ward, Tokyo

Professor Yoshihiro FUJITSUKA

Fig. 1: Typical landscape of displacement and gentrification in Minato District during the 2000s.

etween the 1980s and early 1990s, Urban Development Area in the Emergency documents. The print shops were small and when land values in Japan soared, Urban Development Area, and a building medium-sized companies. Furthermore, the Bnumerous plots of land near Central height was exempted from the height district. residences and workplaces of the workers Business Districts (CBDs) were bought up Limitations to the floor area ratio in zoning were generally in the same building. After as investments, and former tenants were were also deregulated in this area. much speculation, investors bought factory displaced. The period also saw financial Chuo ward experienced an increase in sites in the 1980s. The agents of developers institutions such as banks and insurance population due to the implementation of were rampant in Minato 2, pouring 35.5 billion companies moving into the Tokyo core. the Housing Linkage Program (fig.2). As the yen into the land for four years.2 Industrial restructuring significantly increased number of single households increased, The residents of Minato District were the number of white-collar workers in Tokyo. though, the Chuo ward government revised displaced, a few of the houses were In an attempt to recover its population, the its housing policy, and the Housing Linkage demolished, and parking lots were established local government of the Chuo ward in central Program was abolished in 2003 to be replaced in their place. After the collapse of the Tokyo implemented a new initiative, known by a new deregulation policy concerning the economic bubble, a block comprising houses as the Housing Linkage Program, for large construction of high-rise residential buildings. and parking lots was not redeveloped. developments in 1985. The ward government also promoted a The terrace-style houses were demolished scheme to increase the number of family individually, needing to be propped up on Highest street value 2 The Chuo ward government households; only long-term residential their sides. Vacant parking lots and houses 2 set two standards for the Housing buildings were allowed to increase the floor remain in front of the high-rise buildings. 90+ persons increase Bakuro 1 shi Linkage Program according to the area ratio to 1.4 times the standard floor The apparatus for elevated parking has YokoyamaHigaHigashi 1 70–89 nihonnbashi KKodenmaodenma 3Hisa 4Hon4 Tomizawamatsu 1 zoning. In the case of commercial area ratio. been rusting, and a bicycle instead of a car HonUUeno Line eno L Hama 50–69 Odenma2 zoning, developers were required The number of construction disputes is parked in the parking lot. Two high-rise Kobuna Hori dome 2 ine to supply housing whose total increased in the first half of the 2000s; buildings are shown in fig.1. The high-rise 30–49 1 3 Ningyo size should be 50% or more of the therefore, in 2004, in order to resolve the building in the middle consists of rented Hon Koami 2 10–29 1 Hama 3 1 2 project site, otherwise be extended dissatisfaction with high-rise building flats which are one-room apartments. The 0–9 decrease Kakigara Nakasu beyond 100% of the project site. construction, the increase in the floor building on the right is 32-storeys high. As 1 Hakozaki The floor space of each housing unit area ratio was reduced from 1.4 to 1.2. two-thirds of the units in the building have supplied by the Housing Linkage Consequently, the number of construction floor space above 40 square metres, more Kayaba 3 1 Program had to measure 40 square disputes dropped in the second half of units can be added. The addition of more 2 Hachobori Shinkawa metres or larger. One problem with the 2000s. During this period, Chuo ward units to the building was allowed by providing Inner Circular Route 3 2 4 2 the Housing Linkage Program, witnessed the highest increase rate (24.8%) public open space around the building; two 1 tomi1 eIrifune 1 in however, was the rising cost of of professional, technical workers, managers, blocks were consolidated in order to enable un2 ShShintomi2 2 Irif3 Minato private housing, which resulted in and officials in Tokyo. The number of this. Deregulation allowed the erection of 1 3 a shortage of affordable housing. these workers increased in three districts: dramatically larger buildings than would 2 Akashi 1 2 3 Tsukuda With the collapse of Japan’s Tsukishima, , and Minato. have previously been allowed, and developers 4 TTsukijisukiji 7 economic bubble, reconstruction Tsukishima is located on the south- indeed began taking advantage of the 6 Expressway plans were abandoned. Land values eastern side of the . There were changes to build much larger high-rises. 3 2 Tsukishima continued to drop during the ensuing warehouses, and a shipyard in Tsukuda, which The building on the right in fig.1 includes very 1 4 economic slump, which lead to is to the north of Tsukishima. Redevelopment expensive flats that rent at over 500,000 yen Sumida River Metropolitan KachidokiKachidoki high mortgage arrears rates and of these sites began in the 1980s; high-rise per month, with the most expensive among 2 5 4 indebtedness. Because numerous condominiums were constructed, and affluent them priced at one million yen per month. Kachidoki 6 underused plots of land stood close people started to live there. Nihonbashi The rent of corporate executives are generally Harumi 3 to Tokyo’s CBD, revitalising these is located in the north-eastern part of paid by their companies. areas became the government’s Chuo ward. Wholesale shops were once In the ways mentioned above, the primary objective. In the late 1990s, agglomerated in this district. However, as local government’s urban policy induced price deflation drove Japan’s the wholesale business began declining, gentrification. Former residents could 0 1km economy into a recession. Many many wholesale shops were replaced by no longer afford to live in these expensive small and medium-sized factories condominiums, which attracted white-collar leaseholds, and were consequently displaced. in inner Tokyo closed down or moved workers. Developers invested in this district to to other regions or abroad. redevelop the former sites of wholesale shops. Professor Yoshihiro FUJITSUKA, Graduate Fig. 2: Population In 2002, Japan’s government introduced Deregulation, such as changes to slant plane School for Creative Cities, City increase in Chuo ward the Urban Regeneration Policy with a budget restrictions on the sides of building sites, University [email protected] districts of 2.5 billion yen as an economic stimulus transformed urban landscape. measure to address problems related to bad Minato district is located just two kilometres loans in the central areas of major cities. from the commercial city centre. The district Notes The Urban Regeneration Policy designated features a manufacturing quarter with print districts as Emergency Urban Development shops and is, as such, an agglomeration of 1 Kawasaki, K. 2009. Rokaru Ruru niyoru Toshi Saisei: Tokyo-to Chuou-ku no Areas in the central areas of Japan’s major the printing and binding sectors. The district Machidukuri no Tenkai to Shosou. Tokyo: cities. 70% of the land in the Chuo ward is located close to the Ginza shopping streets Kajima Shuppankai. was designated as an Emergency Urban and the Nihonbashi business district. The 2 Yoshida, U. 1994. ‘Tokyo-to Chuou-ku Development Area.1 The Tokyo metropolitan shops and offices in these districts require no Machidukuri’, Nagoya Toshi Centre government could thus decide on a Special printed materials, including sales slips and Kikanshi 3:25-34.