Kokusai Dori and Heiwa Dori shops take direct hit from coronavirus, revitalization efforts ensue

Kokusai Dori and Heiwa Dori shops take direct hit from coronavirus, revitalization efforts ensue

While pedestrian traffic is returning to Kokusai Dori, empty shops can be seen on the afternoon of July 22 in Matsuo, Naha City.


July 23, 2020 Ryukyu Shimpo

It came to this newspaper’s attention that the Cooperative Associations of Naha Kokusai Dori Shopping Street conducted an examination on July 20 and 21 into the closing of 40 shops on Kokusai Dori (International Street) in Naha City due to the spread of the novel coronavirus. The Cooperative Associations are initiating “International Street Marché” on July 26 to revitalize the shopping street while avoiding the three Cs (closed spaces, crowded places, close-contact), and to have goods sold and foodstuffs supplied on the street. According to the Cooperative Associations of Naha Heiwa Dori Shopping Street, 16 shops on Heiwa Dori (Peace Street) closed on July 22.

There are approximately 470 shops on Kokusai Dori. At the peak time of the influence of coronavirus, 400 or more shops were temporarily closed, and starting in June the number of shops reopening increased. By the time of the examination, 38 of these shops were still temporarily closed. Over the course of four consecutive holidays, about 20 percent of these temporarily closed shops reopened. At the peak time, on Heiwa Dori, too, 179 shops were for the most part temporarily closed, and at the time of this article more than half of these shops had reopened.

One shopkeeper in his 60s managing a restaurant on Kokusai Dori temporarily closed his restaurant for two months starting in April, and reopened in late June. He explained the difficulty of the current circumstances, saying “Our income has fallen 20-30 percent compared to the same period last year; each month we are at about a 300,000 yen deficit”.

The Kokusai Dori Marché is being initiated as an emergency measure of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLITT) to make possible the selling of goods and supply of foodstuffs that have not been possible in the conventional transit mall. It will be held every week on Sunday. Akihiro Ishizaka, head of the Cooperative Associations of Naha Kokusai Dori Shopping Street, said “We are aiming for a street that offers peace of mind, safety, and a comfortable space that tourists can choose [to visit]”.

(English translation by T&CT and Erin Jones)

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