JOURNAL
Look up public asset reuse.
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A Guide to Entering Public Space Business — Park-PFI, Closed Schools, and Small Concessions [2026 Edition]
A practical guide for private-sector businesses considering entry into park cafés, closed school activation, and Small Concession projects. Covers how to find opportunities, consortium formation, writing proposals, and managing revenue after entry.
Operating Public Facilities Through Disability Welfare Reimbursements — The Stability of Statutory Revenue [2026 Edition]
By attracting disability welfare service providers to underutilized public facilities such as closed schools and former community centers, municipalities can secure a stable revenue base through statutory reimbursements. This article explains how the model works, its legal requirements, and the conditions for success.
Designated Manager System: 4 Structural Issues and the Park-PFI Alternative
Analysis of four structural problems in Japan's Designated Manager System (price wars, short cycles, low investment, nominal competition) and how Park-PFI offers an alternative for urban parks.
How to Think About 'What's Next' After the Comprehensive Management Plan [2026 Edition]
A practical guide for municipalities that have completed their Comprehensive Public Facility Management Plan and are now asking what to do next. Covers individual facility plans, market sounding, method selection, and the organizational challenges that most often block implementation.
Park-PFI in Okinawa — A Model Fusing Parks with Tourism Resources
Since 2023, Okinawa Prefecture has seen rapid Park-PFI deployment across Koza Sports Park (Okinawa City), Manko Park (Naha City), and 21st Century Forest Park (Nago City). This article analyzes the Okinawa-type Park-PFI model premised on fusion with tourism resources, and the structure behind the prefecture's first in-park Starbucks store.
Beyond PFS/SIB — Where Do Proven Programs Go Next?
Of Japan's 379 Pay for Success (PFS) projects, what happens after the outcome-linked 'proof of concept' phase ends? Analyzing domestic cases (Okayama, Toyota) and international examples (Peterborough, Aspire, HIV SIB), this article examines the transition from outcome-linked to fixed-fee commissioning, structural challenges, and the connection to EBPM.
Park-PFI in the Chubu Region — Cases from Aichi, Shizuoka, and Toyama
An overview of Park-PFI cases in the Chubu region (Aichi, Shizuoka, Toyama). Through cases including Nagoya's Tsuruma Park 'TSURUMA GARDEN,' Shizuoka City's Johoku Park, Aichi's Obata Ryokuchi, and Takaoka Otogi no Mori Park, this article analyzes the Chubu region's Park-PFI adoption trends and regional characteristics.
Abandoned Schools × Welfare Facilities in Kyushu — Nagasu Town and CTI Engineering's Initiatives
Analysis of cases converting abandoned schools to welfare facilities across the Kyushu region. Covers Nagasu Town's former junior high school Small Concession project, B&G Foundation's 'Children's Third Place' initiative, and Kyushu's abandoned school welfare conversion patterns. Explains why welfare facility conversions are chosen and the steps municipalities should take.
Public Asset Activation in Shikoku — Potential and Challenges in a Blank Zone
The four Shikoku prefectures (Kagawa, Ehime, Tokushima, Kochi) represent a 'blank zone' where PPP/PFI, Park-PFI, and Small Concession adoption significantly lags the national average. This article analyzes the structural factors behind this gap and emerging signs of change including the Sanuki Manno Park sounding and the Ehime PPP/PFI Regional Platform.
Small Concession in Hokkaido — Strategies for Utilizing Vast Land and Idle Facilities
Hokkaido has the highest number of closed schools nationwide, making idle public facility utilization an urgent priority. Analysis of Ikeda Town × Area Craft Hokkaido's Small Concession case, Hokkaido's idle facility platform, and pioneering reuse cases (Koshimizu Town, Asahikawa City), with a Hokkaido-specific utilization strategy framework.
Public-Private Partnerships in the Kansai Region — Latest PPP/PFI Trends in Osaka, Kyoto, and Hyogo
Comparative analysis of PPP/PFI cases across Osaka, Kyoto, and Hyogo. Covers GRAND GREEN OSAKA's Umekita Park (disaster prevention park district development), Kyoto's machiya regeneration and concessions, and Himeji City's Small Concession (Bokeitei) — revealing the distinctive characteristics of Kansai-style public-private partnerships.
Abandoned School Reuse in Tohoku — Challenges and Success Stories from Japan's Aging Frontier
Analysis of abandoned school reuse cases across Tohoku's six prefectures. Explores region-specific challenges (workforce shortages, difficult access, winter operations) unique to Japan's most rapidly aging region, and examines success patterns including Gojome Town's BABAME BASE coworking space, Tome City's facility reuse, and disaster reconstruction-linked models.
READING GUIDE
Choose a starting point.
Follow a short route through the basics, examples and practical steps. Community groups, researchers and students are welcome.
ROUTE 01
For municipal planning
Start with the basics, then move through cases, process and dialogue design.
- What Is Public Facility Management? Challenges, Concepts, and Next Steps
- Sapporo Yurigahara Park Park-PFI LiLiLi — Sapporo's First Case, Community-Led SPV Park Operation
- The Complete Park-PFI Process — A Four-Year Roadmap from Concept to Opening [2026 Edition]
- Market Sounding for PPP: 8-Item Question Template and Step-by-Step Guide
ROUTE 02
For prospective operators
Understand the system, test viability and prepare a proposal.
- What Is a Small Concession? A Complete Guide for Local Government Officials [2026 Edition]
- Higashi Yuenchi URBAN PICNIC — Kobe Sannomiya Redevelopment and Park-PFI After 8 Years of Citizen-Led Social Experiments
- How to Build a Park-PFI Revenue Plan — With Simulation Template [2026 Edition]
- How to Write a Park-PFI Proposal — Working Backward from the Scoring Criteria [2026 Edition]
ROUTE 03
Learn from setbacks
See how projects stall and which conditions to avoid.
- Abandoned School Reuse Failures — Why Repurposed Schools Become Idle Again: Structural Causes of Withdrawal and Business Collapse
- 5 Patterns of Park-PFI Project Failure — Structural Analysis of Contract Termination, Financial Deterioration, and Resident Opposition
- The Zero-Response Sounding Problem — 5 Reasons Private Operators Don't Participate and How to Fix It