Publication Date

Fall 2001

Degree Type

Master's Project

Degree Name

Master of Urban Planning (MUP)

Department

Urban and Regional Planning

Abstract

In the current economic downturn that Japan is experiencing, there are a number of issues concerning Tokyo suburban areas that face Japanese planners. Among them are the effects of the historical movements of the population into what is now the Tokyo Metropolitan Areah the transfer of power to local governments^; land availability and social problems caused by the changing demographics of an aging Japanese society in those areas. Unfortunately, during the rapid urbanization spurred by necessary development after World War II little thought was given to quality of life issues such as building design or area plans. Instead, emphasis was placed upon the primary problems of housing and feeding a population devastated by the firebombing of Tokyo and other major areas. This remarkably rapid development was almost completely orchestrated by the central government and led to the growth of Japan into the world’s second most powerful economy. Today, this has led to a situation where Tokyo is a city bogged down in its own growth and local governments are struggling to regain their autonomy in the face of a ponderous central bureaucracy.

Intense development in Tokyo led to the central government policy to shift the population away from central areas near business districts and into suburban centers. The high demand for land for commercial property in the 1980s led to high costs and a shortage of land for housing projects in In the suburban areas, demand for housing was rampant as well. High demand combined with a nationwide government practice of strict zoning that discouraged the use of agricultural land and absence of building standards combined with the high levels of customization craved by the consumer'* have led to higher land and home the central city. an costs.

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