All closed due to illegal business! The “Surprisingly Cheaper than Tobita Shinchi” Chon-no-Ma in Kannami Shinchi, Amagasaki!

Kannami Shinchi ” in Amagasaki City, Hyogo Prefecture, has drawn many male customers from all over the country as a colorful district comparable to Tobita Shinchi in Osaka. The “Chon-no-Ma” (a kind of “room for lovers”) had been operating illegally for 70 years under the guise of “free love,” but in November 2009, the business was busted and all the stores were closed. A local resident said, “The current town of Kannami-shinchi is a very interesting place to visit.

Kannami Shinchi was known for its lower prices than Tobita Shinchi, and the quality of the young girls working there was very high.

After the bust, the police began to remove all the goods from the area in a matter of days. I remember well how police officers in patrol cars monitored the removal operations. Although the number of people who came to the area after the simultaneous closure of the stores and restaurants has decreased dramatically, there are still a few stores that are still in business as restaurants and bars.

What does the site that once flourished as a colorful district look like now? We walked around the area thoroughly.

After a 10-minute walk from Hanshin Amagasaki Station through the shopping arcade, which was buoyed by the strong performance of the Hanshin Tigers baseball team, the former site of the Kannami Shinchi district comes into view. Perhaps because it was a three-day weekend when I visited, the shopping street was bustling with people, but once I entered the site, the wave of people suddenly ebbed away. It was deserted, as if the previous lively atmosphere was a lie, and there were hardly any passersby.

There are 37 row houses in a row, and many of them have a sign saying “Owned and managed by Amagasaki City. There are about four stores that have changed their business to stand-up drinking, a little drinking, and BBQ.

After watching for a while, a large black car pulls up to one of the stores that is open for business. We could see strong-looking men getting out of the car, canned beer in one hand and snacks in the other, and leaving at a quick pace. It seems that some customers still go there.

In May of last year, Amagasaki City announced its policy of purchasing the former Kannami Shinchi site, clearing the land, and selling it to the private sector. It was reported that the acquisition of the land and building would be completed by March of this year. However, as of July, there were still some stores in operation.

It was clear that the eviction negotiations were not going well. When we approached a resident passing by, he told us, ” Amagasaki is an area where trouble is relatively common. There are row houses in a row here, so I still feel uneasy about security.