Hokkaido City sees big potential in IR development

Tomakomai city in Hokkaido, which is mulling the possibility of bidding for an IR license, is gaining support from the local business community.

The director of Idemitsu Kosan Hokkaido Refinery, recently offered an enthusiastic assessment to the local media.

He stated, “With our collection of industries, and infrastructure such as ports and airports and highways already in place, our prefecture too is a region of high potential… If an IR can be realized, more business can be attracted and Tomakomai will be set for major growth.”

Elements of the local business community established the “Tomakomai IR Promotion Council” in August 2016, and this March they published the “Hokkaido White IR Initiative,” the main theme of which is to create a hotel, shopping mall, entertainment, and casino facility that would be constructed “in symbiosis with nature.”

Major advantages touted by the local proponents include that the Tomakomai location sits alongside the southern coastline and is host to New Chitose Airport, the largest on the island.

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