Osaka city has launched a new “Promotion HQ” aimed at realizing a “Yumeshima Town Development Concept” on the artificial island of Yumeshima – the proposed site for an Osaka integrated resort.
The Promotion HQ, which held its first meeting on Tuesday, was formulated by three economic groups of Osaka city, Osaka prefecture and Kansai. The plan is to create a new global tourism center which will be a catalyst for economic growth and incorporates infrastructure development such as an extension of the subway line to the island.
Yumeshima is both the planned IR site and home to the upcoming 2025 World Expo, with the HQ policy aimed at sharing information and creating a business plan across departments in regard to these upcoming developments. About 28 million people are expected to visit the island during the six months of the Expo, and it is considered a natural course to launch an IR before its launch.
According to the Sankei Shimbun, in addition to city officials, Deputy Governor Seigo Tanaka and other officials from Osaka prefecture attended this week’s first meeting.
Osaka Mayor Ichiro Matsui, who heads Promotion HQ, stated, “Yumeshima will be an important base for establishing an urban center within Osaka, the second capital of Japan. I hope that we can push forward with this with the prefecture’s cooperation.”