TOMAKOMAI, Hokkaido -- Four men in their 30s collected about 3.5 million yen via crowdfunding to open a community space in Atsuma, Hokkaido, which was devastated by a massive earthquake in September 2018.
The men, who live in the town, renovated a vacant store space near the town office to open Ichikara -- literally meaning "from scratch" -- which is named after the founders' desire to rebuild the town's future. It opened June 21, about 3-1/2 months later than scheduled due to the spread of the new coronavirus. The cafe-style space has 22 chairs for four tables, a counter, and WiFi.
After the earthquake in November 2018, fisherman Kentaro Sawaguchi and others came up with an idea of creating a space where the townspeople could interact.
Tomoya Narita, an entrepreneur who moved to Atsuma in April 2019 from the Hokkaido city of Chitose, went along with the idea to start preparing such a space.
Ichikara sells coffee and the other beverages. It is open between 9 a.m. and 10 p.m. but closes irregularly. The space can be rented. Networking events with invited lecturers are planned to discuss specific topics.
A 64-year-old resident of the town said: "My house was collapsed by the Hokkaido earthquake. I'm still distressed, but it's encouraging to come here and see young people discussing how to revitalize our community."
Narita said, "I hope people from various industries will casually mingle here and come up with ideas to eventually revitalize our town."
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