HOKKAIDO, Jun 14 (News On Japan) –
A former resort space within the Otamoi district of Otaru City has hit a serious roadblock in its redevelopment plans. “This is the Otamoi coastline,” defined a Ryugu Cruise information. “There used to be a building here called Ryugukaku, a high-end restaurant. It’s hard to believe.”
Perched alone on a 40-meter-high cliff stands a construction resembling a small shrine, the stays of an amusement park that after operated right here within the early Showa period.
The web site, providing sweeping panoramic views, turned the main target of a brand new undertaking launched in 2021.
“This is magnificent, very Hokkaido-like,” Nitori Holdings Chairman Akio Nitori remarked in 2022. “Visitors from Honshu would be deeply impressed.”
Nitori proposed redeveloping the location into a brand new vacationer vacation spot, presenting the thought to native enterprise teams.
However, 4 years later, progress has stalled.
Standing on the car parking zone overlooking the Otamoi shoreline, a reporter famous that the doorway to the previous Otamoi Amusement Park, as soon as often called ‘Yumenosato,’ nonetheless stays. Signs warn of landslide hazard, and the world is now off-limits.
In the early Showa period, the northwest a part of Otaru was dwelling to one in every of Hokkaido’s premier leisure services: Yumenosato Otamoi Amusement Park. With leisure halls and seashores, the park attracted 1000’s of holiday makers every day in the course of the summer time season.
Its centerpiece was Ryugukaku, an expensive restaurant that appeared to drift above the ocean like a “castle in the sky,” beloved by enterprise leaders and cultural figures of the time.
However, in 1952, Ryugukaku was destroyed by hearth and closed down. Frequent landslides ultimately pressured the closure of the strolling trails, and the once-celebrated Otamoi Amusement Park light into obscurity.
Moved by the dramatic surroundings, Nitori in 2021 donated 50 million yen to the Otaru Chamber of Commerce and Industry to fund redevelopment research.
“It was breathtaking to discover such a thrilling and dramatic landscape in Hokkaido,” Nitori mentioned on the time.
Plans included constructing an statement terrace paying homage to Ryugukaku and putting in a zipline throughout the cliffs. In 2022, Nitori expressed hope that with participation from tourism associations, the nationwide authorities, and native communities, the undertaking may very well be accomplished inside three to 5 years.
But the Otaru Chamber of Commerce has since introduced that the plan will probably be postponed.
The council, comprising the chamber and native tourism associations, has successfully determined to freeze the undertaking. According to the council, the town of Otaru has raised security considerations over the world and has prioritized different administrative points. As a end result, securing the estimated 1.5 billion yen in personal sector funding has been deemed unrealistic.
“It’s disappointing,” mentioned one Otaru resident. “I was hoping to see Otaru revived and bustling again.” Another resident added, “Renovating the area would likely cost a lot.”
Toshio Ebina, president of Hokuo Sangyo, which operates cruise ships in Otaru, had additionally positioned excessive hopes on the undertaking.
“Otaru offers a perfect combination of sea, mountains, and tourism,” Ebina mentioned. “If this project doesn’t move forward, a major gap will remain in Otaru’s tourism industry.”
Source: HBCニュース 北海道放送