新スタジアム整備、県・秋田市・クラブが基本方針に合意　事業実現の鍵は民間資金の調達　秋田 (26/07/17 19:00)

Moves are underway to develop a new stadium for J2 League soccer club Blaublitz Akita. On the 17th, Akita Prefecture, Akita City, and the club announced they had reached an agreement on the basic policy for stadium development. The basic policy agreed upon by the prefecture, Akita City, and the club remains unchanged from the draft policy announced in May. It includes provisions such as the prefecture and Akita City jointly developing and owning the stadium at Yabase Sports Park, setting a development cost cap of 14.2 billion yen, with the private sector bearing half and the prefecture and city splitting the remaining half equally. Following the agreement, Akita City Mayor Jun Numaya spoke to the press. Akita City Mayor Jun Numaya: "Today marks a turning point, a new stage in which the private sector will take the lead, with the government providing support from behind." Mayor Numaya also indicated that the city would not accept individual donations through the Furusato Nozei (hometown tax) system, citing concerns that it could negatively impact the tax revenues of Akita City and other municipalities in the prefecture. Akita City Mayor Jun Numaya: "Even if we were to implement the Furusato Nozei system, it's unrealistic to expect that it would account for the majority of the 4 to 5 billion yen in fundraising. Therefore, the ball is in the court of the private sector, on the side of Blaublitz, to determine whether they can secure funding through other means." Meanwhile, Governor Suzuki, who initially showed enthusiasm for utilizing the individual Furusato Nozei system, stated at a press conference on July 14th that he would "consider whether or not to implement it." A prefectural official told Akita Television that "the governor's thinking and policy remain unchanged," adding that "the club should take the lead in fundraising." The club commented, "We will proceed according to the schedule and work towards securing private funding." The prefecture and city plan to use the funds raised by Blaublitz through a private funding project to formulate a basic development plan by fiscal year 2026. The focus going forward will be on securing private funding. The basic plan stipulates that design work will begin in fiscal year 2027 and construction will commence in fiscal year 2028. However, the project cannot proceed unless the club secures approximately 500 million yen before design work begins and the entire amount to be borne by the private sector before construction starts. With the agreement on the basic plan creating a certain roadmap, it seems the ball has now shifted to the club to determine whether the project will be realized.