ABSTRACT
In Japan, the population decline caused by reduced agricultural production has resulted in a marked increase in the number of vacant houses in rural areas. In the meantime, the urban baby-boomers reached their retirement age around 2007. It is highly expected that a large population may move to rural areas from the city in the coming years. With an opportunity to increase the rural population, both national and municipal governments have offered programs to promote a new lifestyle in rural areas for the aging urban population. They encourage people in the city to move to rural areas. To provide them with housing, many local governments have set up vacant farmhouse reuse programs that offer information, mediation assistance, and subsidies for repair. How can the private farmhouses be converted for public use and other new functions? What would this mean to the social and spatial fabric of rural towns and villages and their relationships with urban residents in Japan?
