Research of the Debate Process Related to Space Use of Obuse Town Library: How was Consensus Achieved from the Varied Opinions?

Abstract

The “library construction steering committee” conducted continued debates to reflect the opinions of residents in the construction of the new town library in Obuse, Nagano Prefecture. The concept of the library transformed from one based on conventional usage to one based on new exchanges, thus attracting attention for several years.

The original space composition, featuring openness and diversity, seems to be the result of debates conducted by the steering committee over a period of one and a half years. The main topic of this study is to gain a concrete grasp of the debate process by extracting important group conversations held during the decision-making process.