ABSTRACT
At the national level, the Japanese government introduced the Detailed Plan System (a system of small-area regulation through a combination of detailed plans and facility preparation plans with citizen participation methods) in 1980. Designed for the formation of small areas with a quality environment, the system gave local governments additional authority for community planning. In response to the popularity of Machizukuri, several local governments introduced their own community development ordinances in addition to the Detailed Plan System. Kobe and Setagaya, for instance, established Machizukuri ordinances and promoted participatory community planning on a neighborhood scale, followed by many other municipalities around the country which conducted similar experiments. Since then, the individual systems supported by various funds, local governments, and government agencies to assist Machizukuri have diversified and continued to expand. Nevertheless, the government has until today not put into force any comprehensive and fundamental law to support Machizukuri. However, from another point of view, this lack of legal frameworks has in a way enabled a diversity of parties to provide freely a variety of assistance services for citizens to choose.
