Research on the trend toward public access to canals in the Tokyo waterfront area

In recent years, great regard has been given to the participation of various administrative organizations, NPOs and local residents in coastal zone management. Following the formulation of the "Canal Renaissance Project (Tokyo Metropolitan Gov. Bureau of Port and Harbor, 2005)" as a step towards easing restrictions to vitalize canal spaces in the Tokyo waterfront area, local organizations are developing commercial and recreational uses of canal spaces. In this report, we have conducted field research and hearings with managers and business people in five regions of the Tokyo waterfront where the Canal Renaissance Project is being implemented. Through this research, we have observed the usage conditions of the canal spaces and how multiple organizations cooperate with each other, and attempt to identify problems associated with the use of canal spaces by local organizations. The results show that eased regulations on water area usage permissions have created new opportunities for local businesses, store associations and NPOs to utilize canals. By establishing floating restaurants and floating piers, waterfront areas have been developed with consideration for the spatial structure and surrounding area of canals in each region. We have observed a large variety of interactions between organizations and groups, and the establishment of a system centered on a committee made up of local businesses and residents in each region. However, we have also noted that due to the strong individuality of the projects carried out in each region, they have not lead to any inter-regional cooperation, thus not necessarily successfully utilizing the inherent spatial continuity of the canals. There have also been examples of complication of the committees that connect the local residents involved in the projects and the government. This is an issue in the management and operation of canal usage. From the aforementioned results, it is clear that the projects observed in canal usage under the eased regulations are organized such that they are directly carried out by committees, in a so-called "committee-based model." There is no "local coordinator" present to handle the tasks of reconciling opinions between project leaders, applying for water area usage permission, maintenance of facilities, acceptance of new participants, and the like.