is one of the eight wards of

Niigata City may refer to: * Niigata Prefecture, Japan **Niigata (city), the capital of the prefecture * Albirex Niigata, the city's professional football club * Niigata Transys, a Japanese railway vehicle manufacturer * Niigata Stadium, an athletic stadium in ...

Niigata Prefecture is a prefecture in the Chūbu region of Honshu of Japan. Niigata Prefecture has a population of 2,227,496 (1 July 2019) and is the fifth-largest prefecture of Japan by geographic area at . Niigata Prefecture borders Toyama Prefecture and ...

, in the

Hokuriku region The was located in the northwestern part of Honshu, the main island of Japan. It lay along the Sea of Japan within the Chūbu region, which it is currently a part of. It is almost equivalent to Koshi Province and Hokurikudō area in pre-mod ...

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the n ...

. It comprises much of the city centre. , the ward had an estimated

population Population typically refers to the number of people in a single area, whether it be a city or town, region, country, continent, or the world. Governments typically quantify the size of the resident population within their jurisdiction usi ...

of 183,231 in 87,162 households and a

population density Population density (in agriculture: standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical term.Matt RosenberPopu ...

of 4,900 persons per km². The total area of the ward was .

Geography

Chūō-ku is located in the approximate centre of Niigata City, bounded by the

Sea of Japan The Sea of Japan is the marginal sea between the Japanese archipelago, Sakhalin, the Korean Peninsula, and the mainland of the Russian Far East. The Japanese archipelago separates the sea from the Pacific Ocean. Like the Mediterranean Sea, i ...

to the north and the

Nihonkai-Tōhoku Expressway The is a national expressway in Japan. It is owned and operated by East Nippon Expressway Company. Naming The course of the expressway takes it alongside the coastline of the Sea of Japan (Nihonkai) in the Tōhoku region of Japan. The Nihonk ...

to the south. The area comprises the old city as well as the , , and the districts.

Neighboring municipalities/wards

** Higashi-ku, Niigata ** Kōnan-ku, Niigata ** Nishi-ku, Niigata

Neighborhoods

Central Business District

Chūō-ku is the heart of Niigata in terms of economic and political importance. The City Office is located here along with several central government and prefectural agencies. Japan's national broadcaster

NHK , also known as NHK, is a Japanese public broadcaster. NHK, which has always been known by this romanized initialism in Japanese, is a statutory corporation funded by viewers' payments of a television license fee. NHK operates two terrestr ...

has its prefectural TV station and radio station in Chūō-ku. There are several company head offices based in the district. It is also the site of old Niigata City which extends from

Niigata Station is a major railway station in Chūō-ku, Niigata, Japan, operated by East Japan Railway Company (JR East). The station is at the centre of Niigata city, the largest city on the Sea of Japan coast in Honshu. It forms the central station for the ...

downtown to Bandai Bridge and

Furumachi , literally meaning "Old Town", is the name of a central business district in Niigata City, Niigata Prefecture, Japan. The district is centered on Furumachi-dori street and extends north to Honcho-dori street and south to Nishibori-dori street. Fu ...

Furumachi

in Niigata city is located on left bank of Shinano River across Bandai Bridge. It lies on Niigata Island and faces the

. The area has been developed around Masaya-koji, which is a wide six-lane thoroughfare connecting Furumachi with Niigata Station. Furumachi has business districts as well as several historic parts. Narrow alleyways and streets crisscross beneath the modern office buildings. The historic Honcho market is also here. Much of the area contains modern buildings. This is because Furumachi was rebuilt after an earthquake devastated this part of eastern Niigata in 1964. This is in marked contrast with areas on the west side of the river which still retain traditional-looking streets containing older houses.

History

The area of present-day Chūō-ku was part of ancient

Echigo Province was an old province in north-central Japan, on the shores of the Sea of Japan. It bordered on Uzen, Iwashiro, Kōzuke, Shinano, and Etchū Provinces. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "''Echigo''" in . It corresponds today to Niig ...

, and developed as a port town for Nagaoka Domain under the

Edo period The or is the period between 1603 and 1867 in the history of Japan, when Japan was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and the country's 300 regional '' daimyo''. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengoku period, the Edo period was character ...

Tokugawa Shogunate The Tokugawa shogunate (, Japanese 徳川幕府 ''Tokugawa bakufu''), also known as the , was the military government of Japan during the Edo period from 1603 to 1868. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005)"''Tokugawa-jidai''"in ''Japan Encyclopedia ...

. Niigata was one of the ports opened to foreign trade by the 1858

Harris Treaty Harris may refer to: Places Canada * Harris, Ontario * Northland Pyrite Mine (also known as Harris Mine) * Harris, Saskatchewan * Rural Municipality of Harris No. 316, Saskatchewan Scotland * Harris, Outer Hebrides (sometimes called the Isle ...

. Modern Niigata city was created with the establishment of the municipalities system on April 1, 1889. The Hokuetsu Railway commented Niigata to Tokyo in 1897, and the first Bandai Bridge across the

Shinano River The , known as the in its upper reaches, is the longest and widest river in Japan and the third largest by basin area (behind the Tone River and Ishikari River). It is located in northeastern Honshu, rising in the Japanese Alps and flowing ...

was completed in 1908, shortly before the city was destroyed by a fire. The city escaped serious damage in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

; however, much of the city burned down in a fire in 1955 and again suffered from damage in the

1964 Niigata earthquake Events January * January 1 – The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland is dissolved. * January 5 - In the first meeting between leaders of the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches since the fifteenth century, Pope Paul VI and Patriarc ...

. Niigata became a government-designated city on April 1, 2007, and was divided into wards, with the new Chūō Ward consisting of much of the central business portion of the city.

Education

Universities

* Niigata University (Asahimachi Campus / Nishi-Ohata Campus) * Niigata Seiryo University *

The Nippon Dental University is a private university in Tokyo and Niigata, Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Ja ...

(Niigata)

Secondary education

Chūō-ku has five public high schools operated by the Niigata Prefectural Board of Education, two public high schools operated by the Niigata City Board of Education, three private high schools and one private combined middle school/high school. The ward also has ten public middle schools operated by the city government.

Transportation

Railway

JR East The is a major passenger railway company in Japan and is the largest of the seven Japan Railways Group companies. The company name is officially abbreviated as JR-EAST or JR East in English, and as in Japanese. The company's headquarters ar ...

Jōetsu Shinkansen The is a high-speed shinkansen railway line connecting Tokyo and Niigata, Japan, via the Tōhoku Shinkansen, operated by the East Japan Railway Company (JR East). Despite its name, the line does not pass through the city of Joetsu or the hi ...

Shin'etsu Main Line The Shinetsu Main Line ( ja, 信越本線, ) is a railway line, consisting of three geographically separated sections, operated by the East Japan Railway Company (JR East) in Japan. It was originally one continuous line connecting and via . ...

Hakushin Line The is a Japanese railway line which runs between and stations in the cities of Niigata and Shibata in Niigata Prefecture. It is part of the East Japan Railway Company (JR East) network. Basic data *Operators, distances: ** East Japan Ra ...

Echigo Line The is a railway line operated by East Japan Railway Company (JR East) which connects the cities of Kashiwazaki and Niigata in Niigata Prefecture, Japan. The line's name is taken from the name of the ancient Echigo Province, which correspond ...

* - -

Transit bus

* Niigata City Loop Bus * Transit bus operated by

Niigata Kotsu is a public transportation company which operates local and long-distance buses in Niigata prefecture, Japan. Bus lines , the following bus lines are in service. Regular busesTimetables - Niigata Kotsu (2018.3) BRT Central NiigataRouteMap ...

** BRT "

Bandai-bashi Line is a bus line in Niigata, Niigata Prefecture, Japan. It is operated by Niigata Kotsu is a public transportation company which operates local and long-distance buses in Niigata prefecture, Japan. Bus lines , the following bus lines are in ...

" : Niigata Sta.— Bandai Bridge—

—City office— Hakusan Sta.—(Aoyama) ** C* : for Central Niigata ** S* : for South Niigata ** W* : for West Niigata ** E* : for East Niigata ** "Sado-Kisen Line" : Niigata Sta.—

Toki Messe is a multi-purpose international convention center in Niigata, Niigata Prefecture, Japan. The center was opened on May 1, 2003, and contains a hotel, restaurants, an art museum, conference rooms, and the offices of several international organiz ...

—Sado Kisen Ferry Terminal

Highways

* * * * * ] *

Ports

* Sado Steam Ship, Sado Kisen Ferry Terminal

Water Shuttle

Shinanogawa Water Shuttle
MINATOPIA - Toki Messe - Bandai Bridge - Bandai City - Niigata Prefectural office - (FURUSATO VILLAGE)

Local attractions

West side of the Shinano River

* Niigata City History Museum (Minatopia)
The Niigata Saitou Villa
*

Hakusan Park is a park in Chūō-ku, Niigata, Niigata Prefecture, Japan. History The 1964 Niigata earthquake caused the sandy soil under the city to liquefy, damaging many city facilities. The aging baseball stadium was converted to an earthquake memorial ...

* Niigata-City Performing Arts Center (Ryutopia) * Niigata Prefectural Civic Center
Niigata city Aquarium (Marinepia Nihonkai)
*

Next21 Next21 is a skyscraper, shopping and office complex in Niigata, Japan. It is tall, and has 21 floors. It has become a landmark of Furumachi, one of the central business districts in Niigata. Access The Bandai-bashi Line BRT Furumachi bus stop ...

skyscraper * Furumachi-dori Shopping Mall * Honcho-dori Shopping Mall * Ninjo-Yokocho Shopping Mall File:160716 Niigata City History Museum Main Building Niigata Japan01bs5.jpg, Minatopia File:Hakusan Park1.JPG, Hakusan Park File:Next21 3.JPG, Next21 in Furumachi

East side of the Shinano River

* Sake Museum Ponshu-kan * Bandai City shopping district * LoveLa Shopping Mall * LoveLa2 Shopping Mall * Niigata Manga & Animation Museum *

NGT48 NGT48 (read "N.G.T. Forty-eight") is a Japanese girl group produced by Yasushi Akimoto. NGT48 is named after Niigata City of Niigata Prefecture, where the group is based. The group performs at the NGT48 Theater which is located in the fourth fl ...

Idol unit *

Niigata Nippo Media Ship is a skyscraper in Chūō-ku, Niigata, Japan. It is tall, and has 20 floors. On the 20th floor, there is an observatory, offering a 360-degree view of the city, Shinano River, Sea of Japan, and Sado Island. Gallery Niigata-Nippo Media-ship ...

File:Niigata_Rainbow_tower.JPG, Rainbow Tower, the symbol of Bandai City File:Niigata-Nippo Media ship-2013.JPG, Media Ship File:TOKI MESSE.jpg, Toki Messe (Niigata Convention center)

South side of the Toyanogata Lagoon

* Big Swan Stadium *

Niigata Prefectural Baseball Stadium is a baseball stadium in Niigata, Niigata opened on July 1, 2009. It is primarily used for baseball and is the home of the Niigata Albirex Baseball Club. The stadium hosted one NPB All-Star Game in 2010. Access ;Transit bus There is a bus st ...

File:BigSwan-1.jpg, Big Swan Stadium and Toyanogata Lagoon

Events

* Niigata Festival (every August) * Niigata Comic Market * Niigata Manga Competition

References

External links

Niigata official website

Niigata Chūō-ku website

(multilingual)

(multilingual) {{DEFAULTSORT:Chuo-Ku, Niigata Wards of Niigata (city)