( ja, 団地, literally "group land") is the Japanese word for a large cluster of apartment buildings or houses of a particular style and design, typically built as

public housing Public housing is a form of housing tenure in which the property is usually owned by a government authority, either central or local. Although the common goal of public housing is to provide affordable housing, the details, terminology, def ...

by government authorities. Older danchi are sometimes compared to

Khrushchyovka ''Khrushchyovka'' ( rus, Хрущёвка, Khrushchyovka, p=xrʊˈɕːɵfkə) or (a derogatory nickname) ''Khrushchoba'' ( rus, Хрущоба, Hrushchoba, t=Khru-slum) is an unofficial name for a type of low-cost, concrete- paneled or brick ...

s, a similar housing development project in the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...

from the same period. The Japan Housing Corporation (JHC), now known as the

Urban Renaissance Agency , also known as (UR, , ), is a semipublic Independent Administrative Institution, and is an agency responsible for Japanese housing. It provides housing at rates pegged to the market, but without the fees associated with private renting in Japan ( ...

(UR), was founded in 1955. During the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s, the JHC built many in suburban areas to offset the increasing housing demand during the post-World War II economic boom. It introduced the Japanese

salaryman In Japan, a is a salaried worker. In Japanese popular culture, this is embodied by a white-collar worker who shows overriding loyalty and commitment to the corporation where he works. Salarymen are expected to work long hours, to put in addit ...

to a life around the

nuclear family A nuclear family, elementary family, cereal-packet family or conjugal family is a family group consisting of parents and their children (one or more), typically living in one home residence. It is in contrast to a single-parent family, the larger ...

in contrast with the multi-generation homes before the war.A Generation in Japan Faces a Lonely Death
Norimitsu Onichi, November 30, 2017, ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

''. The kitchen embodied the raised status of the Japanese housewife, as it was in the center of the apartment, not in a dark corner. The families equipped them with the "

Three Sacred Treasures The are the imperial regalia of Japan and consist of the sword , the mirror , and the jewel . They represent the three primary virtues: valour (the sword), wisdom (the mirror), and benevolence (the jewel).

": a

refrigerator A refrigerator, colloquially fridge, is a commercial and home appliance consisting of a thermally insulated compartment and a heat pump (mechanical, electronic or chemical) that transfers heat from its inside to its external environment so th ...

, a

washing machine A washing machine (laundry machine, clothes washer, washer, or simply wash) is a home appliance used to wash laundry. The term is mostly applied to machines that use water as opposed to dry cleaning (which uses alternative cleaning fluids and ...

and a

black and white television Black-and-white (B&W or B/W) images combine black and white in a continuous spectrum, producing a range of shades of grey. Media The history of various visual media began with black and white, and as technology improved, altered to color. ...

set. The rent payment for a is much cheaper than that of a condominium or a mortgage, but for a public the prospective tenant must usually participate in a lottery to be assigned an open apartment. Some built in recent years are quite modern and spacious, but since there is a lottery for assignment the waiting list can often run years. On the other hand, there continue to be many open slots in older, distant . Originally, the monthly wage of the renter had to be at least 5.5 times the rent. Residents in UR danchi do not have to pay key money or contract renewal fees, making the residences cheaper than comparable housing even if the monthly rents are equivalent. Some are owned by large corporations, who charge low or no rent to employees as a benefit as well as to encourage them to live alongside their colleagues to foster a corporate "family" atmosphere.

Issues with danchi

Aging population

Today, fewer and fewer Japanese live in the rapidly aging ''danchi'', preferring detached houses or condominiums, known as . Due to the mass influx of young families into ''danchi'' in a short period of time from the 1950s through 1970s, age groups of ''danchi'' neighbourhoods are much more uniform compared to other neighbourhoods in Japan. Since the 2000s, it became a major social issue in Japan due to its rapidly aging population with a majority of the population being pensioners with their dependents living elsewhere. The rapidly aging population have caused nearby stores, public facilities and schools to close, further keeping young families from moving into ''danchi'' neighbourhoods. Many of the new residents after the 1990s are childless couples or elderly singles. Seniors living in ''danchi'' often face isolation and are susceptible to

kodokushi or lonely death refers to a Japanese phenomenon of people dying alone and remaining undiscovered for a long period of time. The phenomenon was first described in the 1980s. Kodokushi has become an increasing problem in Japan, attributed to econ ...

, a phenomenon of dying alone and not being discovered. Men living alone are especially vulnerable. Some ''danchi'' have attracted young immigrants and foreign worker families from outside of Japan, gradually lowering the average age of the population, although the seniors still face isolation.

Aging buildings

Many ''danchi'' were built in the 1950s through 1970s with building codes and seismic standards of that time. Buildings from those periods are considered outdated and often have various accessibility issues. While most ''danchi'' have gone through

seismic retrofit Seismic retrofitting is the modification of existing structures to make them more resistant to seismic activity, ground motion, or soil failure due to earthquakes. With better understanding of seismic demand on structures and with our recent exp ...

to meet the current seismic standards, many ''danchi'' are being demolished and rebuilt since the 2000s to modernize and bring the buildings up to current codes, improve accessibility and to attract younger families.

Public perception

Although the name ''danchi'' evoked the image of modern housing at the time they were built in the 1960s, today the name is associated with poverty, aging population and outdated post-war buildings offering minimum amenities to their occupants. Modern ''"danchi"'' built in recent years are no longer branded as a ''danchi'' due to the negative image of this name.

References

External links