Hajime Seki, Mayor of Osaka and Doctor of Law, Lecture: The Development of Osaka Port (in Niigata City, 1930)

 

Mayor Seki Hajime (1873–1935) was a renowned mayor who shaped the “Great Osaka” era—a period of rapid growth for Osaka City spanning the late Taisho and early Showa periods. Faced with a surging population and deteriorating living conditions, he promoted industrial development while simultaneously advancing urban renewal through the Comprehensive Osaka Urban Plan (1928, Showa 3), transforming the city’s infrastructure to meet the standards of a major metropolis. In particular, he undertook projects such as Midosuji Avenue, Osaka Castle, and Osaka　port development from the perspective of urban management.

Regarding Osaka Port, in particular, it was a time when the city was embarking on a second phase of expansion into Nanko（South Port） and Hokko(Noth Port) following the completion of the first phase of reconstruction work, which had begun in 1927 (Showa 3).

In this presentation, I would like to introduce the transcript of a lecture given by Mayor Seki in Niigata City, which was published in the February 1930 (Showa 5) issue of “Port” (Vol. 8, No. 2, pp. 1–10), published by the Japan Port Association, in order to gain insight into Mayor Seki’s views on Osaka Port.

The lecture began with the observation that both Niigata Port and Osaka Port are river ports and artificial harbors, and that their openings occurred around the almost same time. The speaker was asked to discuss the development of Osaka Port and highlight aspects that would be meaningful for Niigata Port. He described the process from the opening of Osaka Port to its construction, noting that while Osaka City’s annual budget at the time was less than 1 million yen, the citizens of Osaka were able to make the decision to begin construction on a project 18 times that size, with a budget of 18 million yen. He also highlighted how the port overcame a difficult period known as the “fishing platform” era to become Japan’s third-largest port in terms of export surplus. These efforts have proven to be a sound investment for Osaka’s industries. The opinion was expressed that, given its relationship with the Port of Kobe, the Port of Osaka should continue to develop as a cargo-oriented terminal port. Furthermore, regarding the Port of Osaka, which has weak ground conditions, the discussion covered the project costs and funding sources for its construction,　and how those costs would be repaid. He presented a plan that treated the port as a single business entity: although it had 40 million yen in debt, it owned 850,000 tsubo (280 hectares) of reclaimed land, generating rental income; furthermore, he calculated that if the land were sold for 50 yen or more per tsubo, the debt could be fully repaid. Although parts of Osaka Port are still managed under public enterprise accounting today, it is clear that even at that time, the port was viewed from the perspective of urban and port management.

Initially, at the request of former Mayor Shiro Ikegami, he left his position as a professor at Hitotsubashi University to become Deputy Mayor, concurrently serving as Director of the Port Department (1915–17). He then recruited civil engineer Rintaro Naoki from Tokyo City—as introduced in Special Feature 4—and set out to vigorously pursue a major overhaul of Osaka’s port and urban infrastructure. At the conclusion of his lecture, Mayor Seki quoted the words of the British Urban Plannner John Barnes:

“Urban planning, when viewed over a single year, appears to be a complete waste of money.

I believe there will be some benefit after five years.

Fifty years from now, people will ask why we didn’t do it sooner.”

(Japanese)關　一　大阪市長法学博士　講演　大阪港の発達（於　新潟市）　

     關　一　大阪市長法学博士　講演　大阪港の発達（於　新潟市）　

關一市長（1873~1935）は、大阪市が急激に成長した、大正後期から昭和初期にかけての「大大阪」時代を築いた名市長である。急増する人口、悪化する住環境、産業振興を図りながら、大阪市の骨格を大都市にふさわしいものへと、総合大阪都市計画（1928年S3）により都市改造を推進した。特に御堂筋や大阪城、港湾整備などを都市経営の観点で事業を行った。

特に大阪港では、1987年（M30）より開始した第１次修築工事の完成後、南港、北港への２次拡張に乗り出す時期であった。

今回は、1930年（S5）２月日本港湾協会発行「港湾」第８巻第２号P1～10に掲載された、新潟市において、関市長が講演された講演録を紹介し關市長の大阪港に対する考えの一端を知りたいと思います。

本講演は、新潟港と大阪港は河港で人工港であり、開港も同時期と似通っており、大阪港の発達を話して、その中から新潟港にとって有意義なことを拾いあげてほしいとのことから話が始まる。大阪港の開港から築港に至った経過を述べ、当時大阪市の経費年100万円に達しなかったところ18倍の1800万円の事業規模で築港を始める決定を大阪市民がなしえたこと、「魚釣台」といわれた苦難の時期を乗り越え、日本で第３位の輸出超過の港となりえたこと。これらは、大阪の産業にとっては、立派な投資となっていること。これからも大阪港は、神戸港との関係もあり、貨物本位の終端港として発達させていくのがよいとの意見。また地盤の良くない大阪港において、その築港に要した事業費とその財源内容、　またその費用をどのように償還していくか、まさに港湾を一つの経営体とみて、負債が4,000万円あるが85万坪（280ha）の埋立地を所有しており、賃借料を得ているし、売却しても一坪50円以上で売れば負債は十分返せるとの腹積もりも披露している。現在も大阪港は公営企業会計で経理されている部分もあるが、この時代に既に、都市経営、港湾経営の視点で港湾をとらえていたことがよくわかる。

当初、池上四郎市長に請われ、一橋大学教授から助役に就任した折は港湾部長を兼任していたが（1915～17年）番外編４でも紹介した、土木技師直木倫太郎氏を東京市より迎えいれ、大阪の港湾、都市の大改造に邁進することになりました。講演の最後に關市長は英国人ジョン・バーンズ氏の言葉を引用して講演を終えています。

「都市計画というものは１年で見ると全く無駄の費用のように見ゆる。

　5年の後には多少利益があると思う。

50年後には何故に早くやらなかったかということになるのである。」