Maidashi ryokuchi

Maidashi Ryokuchi (馬出緑地) is a public park in Higashi ward, Fukuoka, Japan. The park is located in Fukuoka's greenbelt and is an example of the re-use of abandoned railway land in an urban setting. Nishi-Nippon Railroad sold the property to the city in 1980.

Maidashi Ryokuchi has been designed as a children's playground with a public water fountain, playing equipments, and a nature trail. The barrier-free nature trail provides a recreation area for older people and for students from the nearby Fukuoka Junior High School. Located near Yume Town Hakata, it is overlooked by the local intermediate school and the park is a safe place for children to play. It is the biggest of the 10 parks in the Maidashi school district,

Originally at the site of Maidashi Ryokuchi, was the Hakata Bay in the 'Edo' period. At the beginning of the 'Meiji' era, it was reclaimed by a large-scale landfill. In those days, the reclamation was done by human labor (no engine-powered equipment) to carry dirt with straw mat onto the silt layer. Before, the great part of the coastline was natural and described from the parable 白砂青松 () as Shirahama aomatsu (白砂青松, White beaches and green pines^?), which is no longer apparent from today's Maidashi greenbelt.

In 1924, Hakata wan Tetsudo Kisen (博多湾鉄道汽船, Hakata Bay Railway and Steamship Company^?) built the electrical tramway between Shin Hakata (新博多, New Hakata station^?) and Kazu shirama (和白間^?). In 1925 it was extended to Miyaji dake (宮地岳^?). After the amalgamation the company became the Nishi-Nippon Railroad Co., Ltd. (西日本鉄道会社) in 1951, and the railroad between Miyajidake and Tsuyazaki (津屋崎^?) was opened. In 1954, the block distance of southern 3.3 kilometers railway from Nishi tetsu tatara (西鉄多々良^?) was set apart, and it was combined with Nishi-tetsu Fukuoka city line (西鉄福岡市内線^?). In 1980, after abolishing of operation of Nishi-tetsu Takechi line, the ground was bought by Fukuoka City Council. After six years of construction as part of the redevelopment of Maidashi, the land was finally transformed into the park we have today. This park was built in keeping with the low-rise apartment surrounding it and the garden city.

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Wikipedia