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Sorry! Here mentioned symposium(s) will be/were held in Japanese. However, if you find one of these interesting, please let us know, as we may be of some help to you to obtain any information.
Integration or stronger linkage of housing policy and city planning within the framework of urban policy, had been argued since the Meiji Era, and therefore is not original in particular.
Yet, since the serious the social-economic environments surroundings of the dwelling matters in the bubble econmoy period, this issue has developped to a new phase. Securing of residential functions through application of city planning regulations and institutions, housing provision through community improvement, amendment of the large city law, and preparation of the City Master Plan and Housing Master Plan; introduction of a series of projects, regulations, guidances and series of schemes to put these under an organized application.
However, because of the limits of the institutions themselves, changes of social conditions such as a collapse of bubble economy, and vertically-structured bureaucracy in the application phase, these tackles has not been fully effective. Perception gaps in mutual extents and definition could be found occasionally at the researcher, administration and consultants' level, to begin with.
Therefore, through talks and discussion between "housing" and "city planning" on sorting out and evaluation of the conditions on linkage, and future directions under the new post-bubble economy, this research council aims to pursue the undermentined three points, narrowing the subject of this argument to "innercity housing" and "suburban housing provision".
- Are the mutual perceptions and understandings between housing policy and city planning at the researcher, administration and consultants' level improving, to begin with?
- What are the accomplishments and limits of the schemes that were to link housing policy and city planning?
- What are the new direction of "linkage" under the post-pubble economy?
A New Development of Inner City Housing Policy in Tokyo
Variou housing and city planning measures were implemented to sustain and restore population in the Tokyo inner city area, since the bubble economy had conquered. Securing of residential land use through application of city planning regulations and institutions, housing provision through community improvement and preparation of the City Master Plan and Housing Master Plan; introduction of a series of projects, regulations, guidances and series of schemes to put these under an organized application. However, these tackles were not always effective, and under the subsequent change of social-economic environment, such as a collapse of bubble economy, struggles for new measure of inner city housing have begun.
Research Comittee on Housing Problems of Kanto Chapter, Architectural Institute of Japan, with cooperation of Subcomitte on Housing Demand Structure, will hold this year's research council ;"Linkage of Housing Policy & City Planning". There, we will discuss the accomplishments, limits and future directions, under the post-bubble economy, of the schemes linking housing policy and city planning, on field of "inner city housing" and "suburban housing provision".
Therefore, we will hold this symposium just before this research council, taking Tokyo inner city area as a main subject and discuss the new future direction of inner city housing policy and its linkage with city planning scheme.
Directions on the Reorganization of HUDCThe Housing & Urban Development Corporation (HUDC), one of the "Three Columns" that composed Japanese postwar housing policy, is under reconsideration of its undertakings; such as withdrawal from selling of houses, concentrating on redevelopment of inner city areas, etc..
Therefore, with the participation of specialists on housing problems, we would like to reevaluate the difficulties of the HUDC and dicuss the directions for its reorganaization.
Urban Farmlands and Housing DevelopmentsUnder the 1991 ammended "Producive Green Field Law", the farmlands within the Urban Promotional Area of the specific cities in the three large urban areas, were classified into "farmlands to be developed" and "farmlands to be preserved (Productive Green Field)". In the "farmlands to be developed", planned residential development is aimed, but how are the farmlands actually changed five years after legal reform?
Some has been applied with new measures such as "Ryoku-jyu" Development Project, Special Rented Housing for Regional Needs and Leasehold Land System, but there are others not satisfactorily developed. On the other hand, there are also problems with the farmlands which chose productive green field.
This symposium, inviting specialists from sides of city planning, agriculture and housing development, will review the moves both on each sides and of the development during the five years and dicuss the views on housing developments of the urban farmlands.
Present Conditions and Subjects of theIn addition to the former building cost subsidy and interest supply to the undertakers, the Special Rented Housing for Regional Needs (TOKUYUU-CHIN) System, which "promotes supplying of fine rent housings affordable for middle class family households", would take measures such as "Entrusted Lease of Private Housings" by local governments and substantial "Housing Benefit" to the residents, in order to perform strongly accumulation of high quality private rent housing stocks.
Some accumulation done during the four years since the establishment of the system, we would like, after the evaluation of the system and indication of the subjects that have arisen, from both public and private sides, to discuss the future directions of the System.
DEBATE:
"Public Housings" versus "Housing Benefits"
The postwar Japanese housing policy composed of three columns; council housings, the Housing Corporation, and the Housing Loan Corporation; is currently under possiblity of reform caused by the 1993year establishment of the "Special Rented Housing for Regional Needs Promotional Law" which enables housing benefits to private housings.
The housing campaigns in Japan so far, pushed supplying of public rent housings in order to solve housing problems, and question arises whether housing benefit to private housings are effective in solving the problems. We would like to have a debate upon this matter among specialists who take different positions, and discuss the favorable future directions of housing policy.
The New Evolution of Housing MeasuresThe econmic-social surrounding of housings were greatly in transition during the past decades. Housing conditions and residential environments were violently affected especially by the recent steep rise of land prices, and the local governments are in search of new housing countermeasures. Tokyo were the most affected by the "bubble econmy", and its movements were noteworthy. However, the inclusion of these movements would be considered somewhat too substantial to be dismissed as a mere emergent countermeasures against confusion of economy. We know that there were formerly the attempts made by local governments of the Kansai (Osaka) Region, and the recent circumstances can be seen as simultaneous awakening of the issue, taking the increase of conflicts under the bubble economy as an opportunity.
So far, housing policy, such as housing provision plans, worked mostly in a downward direction from the national macro-quantity plans applying to local governments. The local governments, in fact, were under the mere pressure to accomplish the numbers of houses to supply. However, the evaluation of new measures; such as, permanent dewelling measures of housing linkage, private rent housings support measures, housing benefit system for the new married, various housing support measures for the elerly, and housing masterplans, or regional encouragement housing measures and stabilization housing measures of young people in the regional areas; they were obliged urgently under the circumstances, and led us to a new horizon.
These moves have the following charateristics. 1)The ideas were inspired by the local ncessities. 2)They came out as a local based concrete policy proposals concentrating upon specific stratum or targets rather than by regarding macro coordinations. 3)The policy subjects tend to shift from objects (houses) to people (with specific housing demands). 4)Local (regional) minimum standards were adopted in many cases, which exceeds the national minimum standards. 5)Therefore, the housing policy could be seen to develop in various types, in contrast with the unified and the uniform policy adopted so far. 6)As a result, the measures are carried out only in the areas where it is feasible.
The evaluation of the above mentioned movements are still left for us to be in practice. However, we can see in them a sign and a hope for the unfolding of regional housing policy; to inspire from local-base in order to protect and develop regional life, and establish local independece in housing policy, instead of the former just accepting housing measures that came down from central government. A hope for housing policy working together with urban policy (planning), flexible and various regional (autonomous) housing measures that cover every human diversity. Namely, a potentiality of changeover from the former physically-oriented housing measures to an overall housing policy.
With the awareness of the above-mentioned involved issues, this council will target Tokyo, the site of the conference, as a subject. We would review the state of new housing measures that are in practice in Tokyo, verify their problems and effects, and seek for the future directions of regional housing measures. I am looking forward to finding expansion of lively discussions with the panellists integrating into the audience.
(Shingo TAMAKI)
(the mentioned occupations are of then)
Translated by N.Kiuchi
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