Why Can We Construct but Not Demolish?

Abstract

Up until the 21^st century, Japan's central and regional governments proactively constructed public facilities. The current decrease in population, however, now requires a reorganization of public facilities. At the same time, many municipalities can't demolish public facilities regardless of lack of use, because of objections from Parliament and communities. In this paper, we discuss why municipal governments can't make decisions toward demolishing public facilities.