愛知県で“住み続けたい自治体”のランキング　大府市が“子育て世代”に人気のワケは？

On April 27th, Recruit Co. announced the ranking of Aichi Prefecture's "municipalities where people want to continue living" based on the results of a survey. Of the top five, Nagoya City's Showa Ward, Higashi Ward, and Chikusa Ward came in second through fourth. This time, we focused on the municipalities that came in first and fifth place and explored their appeal. Obu City, adjacent to Nagoya City to the south, came in fifth on the "municipalities where people want to continue living" ranking. What do residents find so appealing? (Obu resident) "I think it's convenient because you can get to Nagoya Station from Obu Station in no time." "It's easy to live here because you can get there in one train line, including Nagoya Station." JR Obu Station is just 15 minutes away by special rapid train from Nagoya Station. The nearby highway interchange and easy access to Nagoya and Centrair are also major attractions, according to residents. However, residents also spoke about another appealing point. (Obu resident) "There are plenty of elementary schools nearby. I think we could also enroll our children in daycare." "The (subsidy) payments were incredibly fast. I was watching the news, wondering when they would be deposited. When I checked my account, the money was already there." That's "enhancing child-rearing support." Obu City is committed to supporting child-rearing generations, becoming the first of the three Tokai prefectures to deposit subsidies to child-rearing households last December. The city is also home to the Aichi Children's Health and Medical Center, Aichi Prefecture's only children's hospital, providing a well-equipped child-rearing environment. The mayor of Obu City beams at these citizen comments. (Obu City Mayor Hideto Okamura) "Obu City has been praised for its quick policy response. I think this was reflected somewhat in this survey." In a Recruit survey, the top ranking for "city appeal" was "municipal policies," followed by "child-rearing environment." Mayor Okamura is enthusiastic about striving to achieve the top ranking in the future. (Obu City Mayor Hideto Okamura) "We want to continue to implement meticulous measures that will ensure the well-being of all generations." Nagakute City came in first in the "municipalities people want to continue living in." Known as "Japan's youngest city" in terms of average age, its population continues to grow. According to a survey by Recruit, the number one attraction of Nagakute City is "the likelihood that others will envy me." We asked residents what other attractions would make them envious. (Nagakute resident) "I think it's great that there are so many mall-type commercial facilities." Residents often cited the abundance of commercial and tourist facilities. Driving along the city's main roads, you'll find Apita, AEON, the Toyota Automobile Museum, and more. And there are long lines at IKEA. (Nagakute resident) "There are lots of parks, and the people seem child-friendly." "There's lots of greenery and parks, so it's a great place to raise children." It seems to be popular among the "parenting generation." Another ranking confirms this. Hanamizuki-dori Station on the Linimo (Tobu Kyuryo Line) came in first in the Aichi Prefecture "Ranking of Stations with Excellent Child-Rearing Environments." Irigaike-koen Station also came in third, meaning two of the top three spots are occupied by Linimo stations within Nagakute City. This is BENKEI, a bakery in front of the top-ranked Hanamizuki-dori Station, with rows of delicious-looking breads. Apparently, their most popular item, the Mentaiko French Bread, sells an average of 150 loaves per day. We asked the store manager about the changes in Nagakute City since it opened 12 years ago. (Tetsuya Yamatoya, Manager, BENKEI Nagakute Store) "The residents are getting younger and younger. There are more families and more young children. Compared to 10 years ago, it feels like the area has gotten younger." A Nagakute City official said: (Michio Inagaki, Planning and Policy Division, Nagakute City) "The Linimo line started operating here after the World Expo (in 2005), and development along the line has continued until recently. As a result, urban development continues, and the population continues to grow." With the opening of "Ghibli Park" in Nagakute City's "Expo 2005 Aichi Commemorative Park" in November, it looks like Nagakute City's popularity is set to continue.