Shinagawa

Geography

Shinagawa includes natural uplands and lowlands, as well as reclaimed land. The uplands are the eastern end of the Musashino Terrace. They include Shiba-Shirokanedai north of the Meguro River, Megurodai between the Meguro and Tachiai Rivers, and Ebaradai south of the Tachiai River.

The ward lies on Tokyo Bay. Its neighbors on land are all special wards of Tokyo: Kōtō to the east, Minato to the north, Meguro to the west, and Ōta to the south.

The ward consists of five districts:

Shinagawa District, including the former Shinagawa-juku on the Tōkaidō.

Ōsaki (大崎) District, formerly a town of that name, stretching from Ōsaki Station to Gotanda and Meguro Stations.

Ebara (荏原) District, formerly a town of that name.

Ōi (大井) District, formerly a town of that name.

Yashio (八潮) District, consisting of reclaimed land, including Higashiyashio on Odaiba.

History

Most of Tokyo east of the Imperial Palace is reclaimed land. A large portion of reclamation happened during the Edo period. Following the Meiji Restoration and the Abolition of the han system, Shinagawa prefecture was instituted in 1869. The prefectural administration was planned to be set up in present-day Shinagawa in the Ebara District. In 1871, Shinagawa prefecture was integrated into Tokyo Prefecture.

The ward was founded on March 15, 1947 through the administrative amalgamation of the former Ebara Ward with the former Shinagawa Ward. Both Ebara Ward and Shinagawa Ward had been created in 1932, with the outward expansion of the municipal boundaries of the Tokyo City following the 1923 Great Kantō earthquake.

In the Edo period, Shinagawa-juku was the first shukuba (post town) in the "53 Stations of the Tōkaidō" a traveler would reach after setting out from Nihonbashi on the Tōkaidō highway from Edo to Kyoto. The post-town function is retained today with several large hotels near the train station offering 6,000 hotel rooms, the largest concentration in the city. The Tokugawa shogunate maintained the Suzugamori execution grounds in Shinagawa.

The Tōkaidō Shinkansen high-speed rail line began serving Shinagawa Station in 2003.

Politics and government

Shinagawa is run by a city assembly of 40 elected members. The mayor as of 2007 is Takeshi Hamano, an independent. Liberal Democratic Party together with New Komeito currently forms government.

Shinagawa local election, 2007

Shinagawa mayoral election, 2006

Corporate headquarters

Many companies are headquartered in Shinagawa. Isuzu, an auto manufacturer; JTB Corporation, a major travel agency; Nippon Light Metal, an aluminum and chemical products company; MOS Burger (in the ThinkPark Tower, Ōsaki); Lawson (East Tower of Gate City Ohsaki in Ōsaki), Namco Bandai Holdings; Namco Bandai Games; Banpresto; Rakuten, Honda brand Acura; Toyo Seikan, a packaging manufacturer; NSK Ltd., a bearing maker; Fuji Electric, an electrical equipment manufacturer; Imagica, a media post-production company; and Pola Cosmetics all have their headquarters within Shinagawa Ward. Marza Animation Planet also has its headquarters in Shinagawa.

Japan Airlines (JAL), the head office of its subsidiary JAL Hotels, and registered offices of JAL Express and JALways are located in the Tennōzu Isle area. In addition, Jalux, a subsidiary, has its head office in the I·S Building. One group of employees moved into the building on July 26, 2010, and one on August 2, 2010.

Other offices

Other companies maintain branch offices or research facilities in Shinagawa. Sony operates the Gotenyama Technology Center and the Osaki East Technology Center in Shinagawa. Sony used to have its headquarters in Shinagawa. Sony moved to Minato, Tokyo around the end of 2006 and closed the Osaki West Technology Center in Shinagawa around 2007. Adobe Systems maintains its Japan headquarters on the 19th Floor of Gate City Ohsaki near Ōsaki Station, while Siemens AG has its Japan offices in Takanawa Park Tower. Phoenix Technologies operates its Japan office on the 8th floor of the Gotanda NN Building in Gotanda. Siemens Japan and Philips also have offices in Shinagawa. Microsoft and ExxonMobil have their Japanese headquarters in Konan, Minato, near Shinagawa.

Former economic operations

Prior to its dissolution, JAL subsidiary Japan Asia Airways was also headquartered in the JAL Building. GEOS, an English language school company, once had its headquarters in Shinagawa. At one time Air Nippon had its headquarters in Shinagawa.

Places

Hara Museum of Contemporary Art

The Museum of Maritime Science

Shinagawa Historical Museum (ja)

SHINAGAWA AQUARIUM (ja)

The Shiki Theatre Natsu (ja)

The Galaxy Theatre (ja)

Ohi Racecourse

Site of Suzugamori Execution Grounds

Site of Hamakawa Gun Battery

Togoshi Ginza Shopping District (ja)

Musashi Koyama Shopping District "PALM" (ja)

Parks

Ōmori Shell Mounds Park (ja)

Rinshi no Mori Park (ja)

Shinagawa Kumin Park (ja)

Ikedayama Park – site of a daimyō residence (ja)

Togoshi Park – site of a daimyō residence (ja)

Buddhist temples

Honsen-ji (ja)

Tōkai-ji (ja)

Hōren-ji (ja)

Shintō shrines

Shinagawa Shrine (ja)

Ebara Shrine (ja)

Kashima Shrine (ja)

Churches

Meguro Catholic Church (St. Anselm's Church)

NSKK St. Stephen's Church, Tokyo St. Mary's Church

Christ Shinagawa Church - presbyterian church

Shinagawa Baptist Church, Oi Baptist Church

Higher education

Hoshi University

Rissho University

Seisen University

Showa University

Tokyo Health Care University

Sugino Fashion College

Advanced Institute of Industrial Technology - graduate school

Tokyo Metropolitan College of Industrial Technology (ja) - college of technology (kōsen)

Primary and secondary education

Public elementary and junior high schools are operated by the Shinagawa Ward Board of Education. Public high schools are operated by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Board of Education.

Public high schools

Koyamadai High School (ja)

Ōsaki High School (ja)

Yashio High School (ja)

Private high schools

Ono Gakuen Girls' Junior High and Senior High School (ja)

Kogyokusha Junior High and Senior High School (ja)

St. Hilda's School (Kōran Jogakkō Junior High and Senior High School) (ja)

Shinagawa Etoile Girls' High School (ja)

Shinagawa Joshi Gakuin Junior High and Senior High School (ja)

SEIRYO Junior High and Senior High School (ja)

Nihon Ongaku High School (ja)

The Junior High and Senior High School affiliated to the Bunkyo University (ja)

HOYU-GAKUIN High School (ja)

International schools

Canadian International School in Tokyo

Special education schools

Shinagawa Special Needs Education School - public school for intellectually disabled children

Meisei Gakuen (ja) - private deaf school

Important railway stations

Shinagawa Station in neighboring Minato also serves Shinagawa, and is a stop on the high-speed Tōkaidō Shinkansen line.

Gotanda Station

Meguro Station

Ōsaki Station

Ōimachi Station

Rail

East Japan Railway Company (JR East)

Yamanote Line: Ōsaki, Gotanda and Meguro Stations

Keihin-Tōhoku Line: Ōimachi Station

Saikyō Line: Ōsaki Station

Tōkaidō Main Line: does not stop at the stations in Shinagawa

Yokosuka Line: Nishi-Ōi Station

Shōnan-Shinjuku Line: Ōsaki and Nishi-Ōi Stations

Tokyu Corporation (Tōkyū)

Tōkyū Meguro Line: Meguro, Fudō-mae, Musashi-Koyama and Nishi-Koyama Stations

Tōkyū Ōimachi Line: Shimo-Shinmei and Togoshi-kōen, Nakanobu, Ebaramachi and Hatanodai Stations

Tōkyū Ikegami Line: Gotanda, Ōsaki-Hirokōji, Togoshi-Ginza, Ebara-Nakanobu and Hatanodai Stations

Tokyo Waterfront Area Rapid Transit (Rinkai Line): Tennōzu Isle, Shinagawa Seaside, Ōimachi and Ōsaki Stations

Tokyo Monorail: Tennōzu Isle and Ōi Keibajō-mae Stations

Keikyu Corporation (Keikyū)

Keikyū Main Line: Kitashinagawa, Shimbamba, Aomono-yokochō, Samezu, Tachiaigawa and Ōmorikaigan Stations

Tokyo Metro

Namboku Line: Meguro Station

Tokyo Metropolitan Bureau of Transportation (Toei)

Mita Line: Meguro Station

Asakusa Line: Gotanda, Togoshi and Nakanobu Stations

Road

Shuto Expressway (Shutokō)

Route 1 "Haneda Sen"

Route 2 "Meguro Sen"

Bayshore Route "Wangan Sen"

Central Circular Route "Chūō Kanjō Sen"

National highways

Route 1 "Sakurada Dōri", "Dai-Ni Keihin"

Route 15 "Dai-Ichi Keihin"

Route 357 "Tokyo Wangan Dōro"

Shinagawa is also home to the main motor vehicle registration facility for central Tokyo (located east of Samezu Station). As a result, many license plates in Tokyo are labeled with the name "Shinagawa."

Events

The abduction of Kiyoshi Kariya by the Aum Shinrikyo cult occurred in Shinagawa. On February 28, 1995, cult members abducted Kariya, a public employee, and took him to their facility in Kamikuishiki, Yamanashi. Cult members, including Ikuo Hayashi, injected Kariya with sodium thiopental in order to discover the location of the man's sister (a former Aum member), but Kariya unexpectedly died.

Sister cities

Shinagawa has sister-city relationships with Auckland in New Zealand, Geneva in Switzerland, and Portland, Maine in the United States.

Geneva, Switzerland

Auckland, New Zealand

Portland, Maine

Others

Shinagawa has exchange city relationships with Harbin in People's Republic of China and concludes "Hometown exchange agreement"(ふるさと交流協定) with Hayakawa and Yamakita towns.

Harbin, People's Republic of China - educational exchange city(教育交流都市)

Hayakawa, Yamanashi, Japan

Yamakita, Kanagawa, Japan