Abstract
In Japan, labor markets have been reduced since the 1990s, and there has been an explosion of homeless people in urban public spaces. The homeless who had been living in train stations, parks and streets have subsequently been forced to move from these public spaces. In addition, some forced eliminations were caused by sport. For example, Miyashita Park and Tatekawa Kasenjiki Park, recently eliminated a large number of homeless people due to construction projects for new sport facilities. Why has sport been used in the elimination of the homeless? What kinds of difficulties are brought to the homeless living in public spaces where sport facilities are to be built?
In Nagoya’s Wakamiya Odori Park, two sport facilities were constructed as a means of eliminating the homeless population. However, there are still a lot of homeless people living in the park, and the gate ball court in the park has been used as a soup kitchen. The following will be considered:
1) Sport facilities restrict the use of open/public space since they become places where we only do sport; therefore they create inhospitable environments for the homeless.
2) Homeless people and their supporters transform sport facilities into places where the homeless can live as a support to them, even though these sport facilities were built to restrict them to be there.
This paper clarifies how sport facilities are used by and impact people. This information is extremely important to understand before sport facilities are constructed in public spaces.
