The area in front of Shibuya station continues to change due to redevelopment. <General Incorporated Association Shibuya Ekimae Area Management> promotes sustainable and attractive urban development by making more meaningful use of public spaces. Mr. Osada, the secretary general of Future Design Shibuya, interviewed Mr. Inoue, the secretary general of the company. 【digest】
Return profits generated in public spaces to urban development
Osada you briefly explain the General Incorporated Association Shibuya Ekimae Area Management, for which Mr. Inoue serves as the secretary general?
Inoue: A variety of public spaces will continue to be developed in front of Shibuya Station. We believe that it is our role to create an environment where new business development and various challenges can be made by utilizing public spaces through public-private partnerships.
The profits generated there will be returned to the city and further increase the value of the city. I think that the state in which money circulates is what we are aiming for.
When it comes to public spaces handled by Erimane Osada Shibuya, for example, the underground plaza at the east exit of Shibuya Station, which I am talking about now.
InoueYes, this is a new underground plaza that was completed in the fall of 2019, but it is classified as a ward road in Shibuya Ward.
Osada, so this place is treated as a road.
Inoue Yes. Therefore, setting up a cafe on the road is usually quite difficult, but we were able to set it up by receiving a special exception for Shibuya Erimane. Another interesting initiative in this square is the powder room attached to the public toilet.
This is a powder room that anyone, regardless of gender, can use for free.
Advertisements can also be placed on the large wall of the plaza. Recently, there are many advertisements of music groups, and fans stop and take pictures, and it is becoming established as a new photo spot.
This kind of advertising revenue is also a model that returns to cleaning expenses and town development activity expenses.
Osada, after a public space like this is completed, your role is to enhance the appeal of that place in a sustainable way?
InoueThat 's right. Among various laws and systems, one of our tasks is to find ways to utilize public spaces to create liveliness in the city.
Please read the continuation >> in the column series "VOICE" of Future Design Shibuya.
