Won the Minister of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism Award at the 23rd "Town Revitalization and Urban Design Competition"

At the 23rd "Town Revitalization and Urban Design Competition" sponsored by the Public Design Center for Urban Development, a public interest incorporated foundation, "Cultivate Okayama," submitted by Mika Watanabe of the Urban Environmental Planning Department and one other person (Mr. Ogayu of Onodera Yasushi Urban Design Office, Ltd.), won the Minister of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism Award.

In response to the challenge of creating an urban design that would link the station area and castle town area to create a "walkable town," Okayama City aimed to achieve, we proposed "Cultivate Okayama," a plan to cultivate (develop the space) and nurture (create systems) the town by converting the increasing number of vacant lots into new spaces called "cultivate fields."

Specifically, we are laying the groundwork to improve mobility by utilizing vacant land and other white space in the city, setting up an area management association and council to connect citizens, private businesses, and the government, and aiming to create an urban design that enhances the appeal of Okayama by combining hard and soft aspects through the redevelopment of underutilized land in the castle town as a base for all of this.

Website of the Public Design Center for Urban Planning, a public interest incorporated foundation