Today's issues in the development of "Castle Site Park" considered from the deforestation problem of Akashi Park

This study explored the opposition to tree cutting in Akashi Park 2021 and the issues of the Castle Site Park. With the revision of the Law for the Protection of Cultural Properties in 2019, the roles of cultural properties and the methods of historic site maintenance are expected to change. Therefore, to develop castle ruins parks, it is necessary to determine the issues of castle ruins parks today. In this study, we identified the problems occurring in Akashi Park from the beginning of the 19 century until today by classifying the basis for decision. Furthermore, we determined three issues regarding the development of castle site parks, which are often conflicting. First, the development of castle site parks needs to be examined from multiple perspectives, such as the protection of cultural properties, the conservation of the natural environment of its location, and the utilization as a park. Second, although multiple points of view are necessary to examine issues, there are only a few places to share those opinions and a few methods to create such places. Third, some of the cultural properties, such as stone walls and earthworks, may easily be overlooked like in the case of Akashi Park.