2025 Volume 4 Issue 1 Pages 258-267
There is a market in Sasebo City called Tunnel Yokocho, where a bunker built during the last war is still used as shops and other facilities. The shopkeepers pay a leasehold fee to Sasebo City, the landowner of the bunker, and operate their shops after an annual assessment. Above the bunker are the grounds, the old school building and the old gymnasium, which were closed as a result of integration and are now operated and managed as sports facilities by a local non-profit organization, which attracts many users due to its location in the city center. Since around the time the decision was made to close the school, the city, local authorities and the local community have been continuously discussing and examining how to utilize the former school site. This paper describes the methodology and results of the investigations and assessments carried out to assess the soundness of the bunker, which would be problematic if the market were to continue. It also proposes future inspection methods and other measures to maintain and manage this historic underground structure.
