Uchide Park, Uchide Education and Culture Center, and the Uchide Branch Library in Uchide Kozuchi-cho are reopening today, April 1, after renovation! Ahead of the official opening, a renovation celebration event was held yesterday, March 31, so we went to check it out〜
↑The renovated southeast entrance of “Uchide Park”
Here’s the map↓
The address is 15-14 Uchide Kozuchi-cho, Ashiya City, Hyogo Prefecture.
↑“Uchide Park” is on the south side, and just north of it is the “Uchide Education and Culture Center.” Inside the Education and Culture Center is the “Uchide Branch Library,” and there’s also a Japanese garden right beside the building.
↑The entrance on the Education and Culture Center side. From here, the exterior doesn’t look like it has changed all that much〜
Renovation highlights inside “Uchide Park”
↑One major renovation highlight is that it’s now much easier to move between the park and the Education and Culture Center〜! In addition to deck stairs, there’s also a ramp.
↑A view of the park from the Education and Culture Center side. There are no public restrooms inside the park, but apparently visitors are free to use the clean restrooms inside the Education and Culture Center〜! There are staff members at the facility too, so that feels reassuring.
↑There’s also a sign explaining the history of Uchide Park. It even talks about the beloved “monkey cage” that local residents were so fond of〜
↑This sign explains the park rules. A rulebook is apparently planned to be published on Ashiya City’s official website〜
↑Play equipment for children, including swings and slides, has also been set up〜
↑There are monkeys here too! And they’re a parent and child〜
↑The rabbit and turtle that were here before the renovation. They’ve been nicely repainted〜
↑The crabs that were also here before the renovation! They’ve been painted a bright red.
↑Lined up with the new monkey play equipment, it’s like the folktale “The Monkey and the Crab” is beginning〜!
↑Cherry trees have also been planted, and the blossoms were just starting to bloom〜
Renovation highlights inside the “Uchide Education and Culture Center”
↑The entrance to the “Uchide Branch Library” inside the Education and Culture Center. On the nearby wall, there’s an exhibition gallery upcycled from fencing that used to be in the park, and the lobby now has a space where children can read picture books〜
↑On the first floor, there’s a rental kitchen that can be used for events, as well as a coffee vending machine.
↑On the second floor, in addition to meeting rooms, there’s also a rest area with chairs and tables where you can take a casual break〜
↑The Japanese garden seen from the second floor. What a nice view〜!
↑Benches have also been installed in the garden, so it looks like a relaxing place to spend some time.
↑Lots of Nishikigoi carp were swimming in the pond〜
↑There was a spot where water was bubbling up strongly from the bottom, and lots of carp had gathered there. You could easily lose track of time just watching the carp〜
Scenes from the “Uchibun” renovation event
↑At the renovation event, there were all kinds of activities, including stage performances, exhibitions, sales booths, and lectures!
↑By joining the quiz rally, visitors could get a solid understanding of the newly renovated “Uchibun”〜
↑At the opening ceremony, the calligraphy club from Hyogo Prefectural Ashiya High School gave a calligraphy performance!
↑The calligraphy reading “Uchibun Renewal OPEN” was displayed at the venue during the event〜
↑Of course, Mayor Takashima also gave a greeting! (Added 4/3) We uploaded the video〜↓
According to the mayor, JCR Pharmaceuticals Co., Ltd., headquartered in Kasuga-cho, applied to become the naming rights partner for “Uchibun,” and the arrangement is apparently that the nickname “Uchibun” is OK without attaching the company name or product name. It’s currently still under review, but it sounds like “Uchibun” is likely to be finalized〜
↑After that, various groups continued giving stage performances on the deck!
↑This is an exhibition about the workshops and other activities held in preparation for the renovation.
↑There were lots of panels featuring the new character “Uchimon” too! So cute〜!
↑Apparently “Uchimon” is a character like this. We can’t wait to see more of them in the future!
↑Apparently the pop-out caution signs installed in the park’s shrubbery were made based on this concept.
↑So that means the two people in this car were “Boku” and “the Rat” from Hear the Wind Sing…! What a shocking revelation!
↑There were also books discarded by the library being given away for reuse〜
↑And people were voting on the “Uchibun Blend” coffee to be sold from the coffee machine.
↑There was also handmade cookie sales in the shapes of monkeys and cherry blossoms, plus a booth where you could get an eco bag by answering a survey. It was packed with things to enjoy〜!
↑The “Uchimon” eco bag is super cute! I think I’m going to use it a lot.
