A Study about the Function and Influence of the Workshops in City Reconstruction Planning Process: Through the Reconstruction of Iwanuma City, Miyagi Pref. from the Tohoku Earthquake

In the city reconstruction process from the Tohoku Earthquake which includes themes of various scales, citizen participation workshops seem to have more important meaning and influence than usual workshops. The purpose of this study is to clarify the function and influence of workshops on the reconstruction planning process in Iwanuma city. Our conclusions are that: (1) the workshops made coherent connection between the grand design (or master plan) and the town development conference. (2) when the scale open for discussion shifted, the variety of contents they took and what they wanted to focus on also changed. (3) as the residents accumulated good conversations with each other, they learned others` view points, and deepened their own ideas. The process helped their reasonable decision-makings, and some ideas they made are reflected on the official plan as a result.