Grow

Toward a Susono where people gather and choose to stay

For those who feel Susono's vitality slipping away.

The people who grew up here are often the ones least able to see its appeal — it feels too ordinary. To energize Susono City, the first priority is building a system to attract people. I will re-edit Susono's overlooked appeal from an outsider's perspective. By effectively delivering tourism assets — views of Mt. Fuji, a cool highland climate, and easy access from the Tokyo metropolitan area — we can energize the tourism industry, attract workers, and reinvest the resulting tax revenue into improving daily life, creating a virtuous cycle.

• Drawing on 23 years of branding experience to deliver Susono's appealRe-editing overlooked local appeal from an outsider's perspective and designing outreach that reaches the right audience without a large ad budget. Leveraging the strength of a highland with Mt. Fuji views to energize tourism — including restaurants and lodging — and attract workers.
• Reinvesting the resulting tax revenue into improving daily lifeCreating ways for residents to enjoy everyday pleasures close to home — like spending a day off in the cool highlands without traveling far.
• Making use of vacant homes so long-term residents can own a home hereThe city already has a system for surveying vacant homes, checking owners' intentions, and promoting their use, plus a relocation/employment support grant (¥600,000 for singles, ¥1,000,000 for households, plus a per-child addition). I will check whether these actually reach the outlying and vacation-home areas where vacant houses are concentrated, and push for relocation and settlement support to move forward together.

Rather than building something new from scratch, I will grow a system that makes use of existing resources to support residents' lives.

Support

A community where both the elderly and families raising children can live with peace of mind

For those with elderly family, and those raising children.

Outside its center, most of Susono City consists of forested, hilly terrain. Life is difficult without a car, and daily burdens grow heavier with age. In neighboring Gotemba City, a mobility support service run jointly by the Council of Social Welfare and volunteers is already operating at 10 locations.

I will work with the city and local community to build a system in which working-age residents help elderly neighbors with shopping, hospital visits, and trash disposal in exchange for modest compensation.

• Making the "everyday-troubles help desk" a place people can rely on moreThe city already has a "Life Support Coordinator" help desk for requests like shopping, hospital visits, and trash disposal. I will check how many requests this desk can actually handle, and push for more staff or funding if it's falling short.
• Proposing a system, modeled on other municipalities, so people can ask for help without worrying about how to say thanksTo remove the awkwardness of "what should I offer in return" for small favors, I will propose that Susono City study examples from other municipalities that use ticket-based systems. For support involving transportation, this would include partnering with taxi companies as an option, with liability in the event of an accident clearly defined.
• Creating play spaces and after-school places for children, so families raising kids can keep living hereDay-to-day watching over children handled by the local community, with updates to family living elsewhere delivered through modern communication technology. By dividing roles this way, I aim for a system where both those who provide support and those who receive it can feel at ease, without strain.

I want to support not only the elderly but families raising children and younger generations, together as a community.

Prepare

Toward a disaster-resilient, secure Susono

For those who haven't seen their district's hazard map.

Susono City faces risks not only from flooding and landslides, but from earthquakes and a Mt. Fuji eruption as well. On the eruption front, the city has already made advanced preparations — designating evacuation zones and running detailed simulations with a corporate partner. But no matter how good a plan is, what actually moves it in an emergency is the human ties within a community. In my own area, the neighborhood association stopped functioning due to an aging population and a shortage of people willing to lead it. This isn't just one area's problem — it's something that could happen in any community citywide as the population ages.

• Building a system so disaster preparedness reaches areas where neighborhood associations no longer functionMost individual evacuation plans and district disaster-prevention plans are designed assuming a functioning neighborhood association exists. I will call for the underlying assumptions of these systems to be revisited, so that areas without one — or where it no longer functions — aren't left behind.
• Having the city actively help create "My Evacuation Plan," rather than waiting for residents to do it aloneLeaving it entirely to district initiative hasn't worked — as of fiscal 2024, zero districts had completed one. I will call for city staff and experts to go directly into districts and provide hands-on support in building these plans together.
• Turning a strong evacuation plan into one communities can actually carry outThe city has already made advanced preparations, including designating evacuation zones and running simulations. I will push for the city to put in place a mutual-support system — drawing on other municipalities' examples of merging neighborhood associations or building watch networks — so that areas with a weakened association can still carry the plan out. Areas that are fine today may face the same challenge as they age.

Flooding, earthquakes, eruptions — no one knows when disaster will strike. I want the whole city to prepare for a reality that has become visible here a little sooner than elsewhere.

Open

Toward a city government open to its residents

For those who feel politics is distant and unclear.

Susono City stretches wide from north to south, and I often hear that city government doesn't feel close to people's lives. Many council members are active day to day, but rarely communicate through social media or other channels, leaving residents with little way to see what they actually do. When information doesn't reach people, interest doesn't grow either, and turnout keeps falling. Drawing on my marketing experience, I want to shorten the distance between residents and government and the council, and create an environment where anyone can easily take part in city affairs.

• Hearing directly from residents through the Itsuo Ohashi Supporters Club official LINECreating an easy channel for everyday feedback and requests for what should be raised in council. Voices collected this way will feed into actual council questions, with results reported back through LINE.
• Pushing for the city's website to become a hub for candidates and council members to share informationProposing that the city's official website include a mechanism for candidates and council members to publish their policies and activities. If every member's work becomes visible, I believe it will lead to a council that keeps being accountable to residents even after the election.
• Improving voting access for the elderly and those with limited mobilityExtending the mobility support system from Policy ② to also serve as transportation on election day, so that everyone can cast their vote.

I want to realize a politics judged by policy and action, not connections or name recognition. I want to open up city government so that every resident can take part in shaping their city's future.