JOURNAL
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7 Structural Patterns Behind Closed-School Failures — An Operator Bankruptcy in Toho Village and 216 Unused Schools Flagged by the Board of Audit
…Reinforced concrete schools still within the restriction period, converted using regional revitalization plans (Architectural Institute of Japan paper) 7 Seismic / asbestos discovered late S…
MLIT's Small Concession Guidebook Explained — Three Walls, VFM Exemption, and Contract Risks [May 2026 Release]
…ositioned to promote 'small concession' as a means by which local governments and the private sector cooperate to utilize the increasing stock of idle public facilities — abandoned schools, …
Abandoned School Mixed-Use Development — The Best Pattern Combining Welfare, Education, and Café [2026 Edition]
What Mixed-Use Means Abandoned school mixed-use development refers to the co-location of multiple functions and uses within a single facility. Rather than a single purpose (welfare facility …
Selling or Leasing a Closed School Under the Statutes: Administrative and Ordinary Property, Council Resolutions, Choosing the Counterparty, Termination, and Lease Terms
…l and effect of building leases. A leasehold means a superficies or land lease right for owning a building. The duration of a leasehold is 30 years, or a longer period where the contract set…
A Guide to Repurposing Closed Schools for Welfare Operators: Leasing, Building Checks, Subsidies, Designation Standards and Cases [2026 Edition]
… property, use it as capital contribution or means of payment, or transfer or lend it without fair consideration, unless by ordinance or council resolution . If you want to borrow or receive…
Closed Schools × Community Exchange Hubs — Operating Models for Composite Community Facilities
…verting a closed school into a community hub means inheriting the place's community memory and attachment while creating a new space for exchange. Building Multi-Functionality Component Comm…
Closed Schools × IT & Coworking: Ten Cases from the MEXT Casebook, Zoning and Urbanization Control Areas, Trial Satellite Offices and Grants
… building is changed, Article 48(1) to (14) (restrictions in use districts) apply. The buildings that may be built in category 1 and category 2 low-rise exclusive residential zones, category…
Closed Schools × Tourism & Lodging: Inn Permits, Zoning and Fire Rules, Farm-Stay Grants, and Six Cases from the MEXT Casebook
…nd the Permitting Authority The inn business means inn and hotel business, simple lodging business and boarding house business. Simple lodging business means a business that provides a facil…
How Landscape Companies Can Enter Park-PFI [2026 Edition]
…s confers decision-making authority but also means bearing full responsibility for municipal liaison, financing, and project management. Three criteria for evaluating lead entry: 1. Does the…
Traditional Townhouses and Small Concessions — Why 4 of 7 Projects Involve Kominka [2026 Edition]
…ry three primary constraints: (1) Renovation restrictions — modifications to appearance, structure, or design require Agency for Cultural Affairs or committee approval, extending timelines a…
Property Disposal of Closed Schools: When No Procedure Is Needed, Disposals Settled by Report, Treasury Payments and Funds, and Documents and Filing Times
…shed. Doing any of these within the disposal restriction period generally needs the property disposal procedure. The procedure is set out in MEXT's Notice on Approval of Property Disposal Re…
Transforming Idle Public Real Estate from Liability to Asset — A Municipal Strategy Guide [2026 Edition]
…me regions, the rate of school consolidation means entire communities lose their local school within a single generation. The problem extends well beyond "empty buildings." School buildings,…
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