Filling empty space—Community-based akiya measures, machizukuri, and place-making in shrinking Japan

Abstract

Japan’s shrinking population is becoming visible in its landscape. Amidst Japan’s shrinking birth rate and ageing population, it is currently also facing the problem of an increasing number of akiya (vacant houses). Most houses become vacant when owners pass away and inheritors do not use the house. The cost of demolishing or maintenance, tax breaks for standing homes, and the difficulty selling second-hand houses are some of the reasons why houses remain vacant. While municipalities have been given the legal power to demolish houses that they determine to be at risk of collapsing or affecting its surroundings, this uses public funds and is not sustainable as the only solution. Hence, there has been a shift towards integrating the use of akiya in machizukuri. Machizukuri means ‘town-building’ or ‘community development’ and includes both top-down (authority initiated) and bottom-up (resident initiated) measures. At the same time, there is also the smaller-scale ibashozukuri, i.e. creating a place of belonging. These link to the geographical concept of place, i.e. a space that has been imbued with meaning for people, and place-making, i.e. the top-down or bottom-up process of creating such place. Arguably, using akiya to create community spaces via machizukuri is a type of place-making. This thesis examines three unique case studies set at the urban, suburban, and rural scales to gain a holistic view of resident-initiated projects using akiya to make community space. Though there were different levels of success, all viewed akiya as a site of opportunity to bring community together and create a place of belonging.