Special city

Hiratsuka City

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Location of Hiratsuka in Kanagawa Prefecture

Hiratsuka, KanagawaHiratsuka (平塚市 Hiratsuka-shi) is a city located in

Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan.

As of April 1 , 2017 , the city has an estimated

population of 257 ,87 7 , with 109,020 households,[1]

and a population density of 3,800 persons per km².

The total area is 67 .88 km².[2]

GeographySurrounding municipalities

History

Economy

Transportat ionRailway

Highway

Tour ist attract ions

Sister cit ies

Notable people from Hiratsuka

References

External l inks

Hiratsuka is located on the western Kantō Plain

midway between Tokyo and Mount Fuji, and has a 5-

kilometer coastline in the Shōnan area on the Pacific

Ocean in Sagami Bay.

Chigasaki

Hadano

Atsugi

Isehara

Samukawa

Nakai

Oiso

Ninomiya

Hiratsuka平塚市

Coordinates: 35°19′N 139°21′E

Contents

Geography

Surrounding municipalities

History

 

Coordinates: 35°19′N 139°21′E

Country Japan

Region Kantō

Prefecture Kanagawa Prefecture

Government

 • Mayor Katsuhiro Ochiai (since May2011)

Area

 • Total 67.88 km2 (26.21 sq mi)

Population (April 1, 2017)

 • Total 257,877

 • Density 3,800/km2 (9,800/sq mi)

Time zone Japan Standard Time (UTC+9)

- Tree Camphor Laurel

- Flower Dianthus

- Bird Egret

Phone number 0463-23-1111

Address 9-1 Sengenchō, Hiratsuka-shi,Kanagawa-ken 254-8686

Website www.city.hiratsuka.kanagawa.jp(http://www.city.hiratsuka.kanagawa.jp)

The area around Hiratsuka has been settled since

prehistoric times, and mention of the area as part of

ancient Ōsumi District, Sagami Province is found in

Nara period records. From the Heian period through

Kamakura period, the area was divided into shōen

controlled by various samurai clans and in the

Sengoku period was the site of several battles

between the later Hōjō clan of Odawara and the

Miura clan. After the defeat of the Hōjō at the Battle

of Odawara by Toyotomi Hideyoshi, the area came

under the control of Tokugawa Ieyasu, who built a

summer palace (the Nakahara Goten) in 1596 at the

site now occupied by the Hiratsuka City Nakahara

Elementary/Primary School. Hiratsuka was retained

as tenryō territory after the establishment of the

Tokugawa shogunate, and flourished as Hiratsuka-

juku, a post town on the Tōkaidō connecting Edo

with Kyoto. As the 7 th station, it is often depicted in

the series of ukiyo-e about the 53 Stations of the

Tōkaidō made among others by artists such Hokusai

and Hiroshige.

After the Meiji Restoration, Hiratsuka town was

founded on April 1 , 1889, as part of the new Naka

District within Kanagawa Prefecture. It merged with

neighboring Suma Town on April 1 , 1929, and was

proclaimed Hiratsuka City on April 1 , 1932.

Prior to World War II, Hiratsuka was the location of

the Hiratsuka Navy Ammunitions Arsenal (平塚海軍

火薬廠 ) of the Imperial Japanese Navy and Japan

International Aircraft Industries (日本国際航空工業),

a Nissan group military aircraft factory. Hiratsuka

was largely destroyed on July 16, 1945, during the

Bombing of Hiratsuka in World War II. Due to its

strategic location and wide beaches, it was also one of the targets for the planned invasion of Japan during

the final stages of World War II.

The city quickly rebuilt after the war, annexing several neighboring villages in the mid-1950s to attain its

current area. The population exceeded 200,000 by 2001 and Hiratsuka became a special city with

increased autonomy from the central government. The current mayor is the independent OCHIAI

Katsuhiro (落合克宏) who was elected April 24, 2011, and assumed office on April 30. Previously he had

served two terms on the Hiratsuka city council and as council chairperson for the majority of the second

term. OCHIAI succeeded Ritsuko ÔKURA the city 's first female mayor who served from 2003 to 2011.

Hiratsuka

Economy

Hiratsuka has a mixed economy, with tax revenue coming from wagers made at Shonan Bank Cycling

Velodrome, and several industries located in industrial parks in the outskirts of town. Major plants are

operated by Nissan Shatai, Y okohama Rubber Company, Canon, Furukawa Electric, Pilot (pen company)

(the famous Namiki pens are produced at Kiratsuka), Kansai Paint, and Mitsubishi Plastics. Nissan Shatai

produced the largest employment on the City , but announced the plan to let a factory move to Kanda.

Western firms such as Moog and MacDermid Performance Solutions also have a strong presence in this

city .[3] Hiratsuka is also a bedroom community for Y okohama and Tokyo, with residents attracted by the

"Shōnan lifestyle".

JR East - Tōkaidō Main Line, Shōnan Shinjuku Line

Hiratsuka Station

Japan National Route 1, to Tokyo or Kyoto

Japan National Route 129, to Sagamihara

Japan National Route 134, to Yokosuka via Kamakura

Japan National Route 271, to Atsugi or Odawara (toll)

Odawara-Atsugi Road

Shinshōnan Bypass

Tanabata festival

Shonan Bellmare football club, three-time Japanese championsbased at Hiratsuka Athletics Stadium

Takayama city, Japan, since October 22, 1982

Hanamaki city, Japan, since April 27, 1984

Izu city, Japan, since February 6, 2013

Lawrence, Kansas, USA, since September 21, 1990

Yukari Fukui - voice actress

Shinya Suzuki - manga artist

Yamanashi Hanzō - general, politician

Michael Hora - former child actor

Yui Imaizumi - idol singer

Transportation

Railway

Highway

Tourist attractions

Hiratsuka Tanabata festival

Sister cities

Notable people from Hiratsuka

References

1. "Statistics of Hiratsuka City" (http://www.city.yamato.lg.jp/web/soumu/jinkoutosetaisu.html) (in Japanese).

Japan: Hiratsuka City. Retrieved 6 May 2017.

2. Hiratsuka City Hall (ed.). "Hiratsuka-shi Statistical Documentation" (http://www.city.hiratsuka.kanagawa.jp/com

mon/100066394.pdf) (PDF). Retrieved March 11, 2016.

3. "MacDermid Performance Solutions Completes Major Expansion of Japan Facility" (https://finance.yahoo.co

m/news/macdermid-performance-solutions-completes-major-082000703.html). Yahoo! Finance. 4 November

2016. Retrieved 2017-06-29. "MacDermid Performance Solutions’ state-of-the-art R&D facility is located in

Hiratsuka City and now equipped with enhanced capabilities to accommodate the changing requirements of

Japanese customers of both plating chemistry and assembly materials."

Official Website (http://www.city.hiratsuka.kanagawa.jp/) (in Japanese)

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Hiratsuka,_Kanagawa&oldid=853772762"

This page was last edited on 6 August 2018, at 22:20 (UTC).

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