Aobanomori Park, Urban park in Chūō ward, Chiba, Japan
Aobanomori Park is a 53.7-hectare prefectural urban park in Aoba-chō, Chūō Ward, Chiba, divided into nature, recreation, culture and sports zones. The culture zone holds the Chiba Prefectural Central Museum, an ecological garden, the Arts and Culture Hall, a plum grove, a sculpture plaza with 19 works, a Western-style garden and the Araku Kofun burial mound. The sports zone has an athletics stadium, baseball ground, tennis courts and an archery range.
The park opened on 1 April 1987 on the former site of the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries livestock experiment station, in Chuo ward, Chiba. In April 1990 a sculpture plaza opened with 20 works, 10 invited and 10 chosen by public competition; 19 were on display as of 22 November 2019. A prefectural library and archives complex is planned near the lawn, with opening set for fiscal 2029.
The park's sculpture square opened in April 1990 with 20 works, ten invited and ten chosen by public competition; 19 remain as of November 2019. The Chiba Prefectural Central Museum and its outdoor ecological garden sit in the culture zone, and the arts and culture hall hosts concerts. The plum grove is a noted viewing spot.
The park has four zones: Nature, Recreation, Culture and Sports, each served by its own gate and car park. The west gate suits the park centre, sculpture square and arts hall; the north gate the central museum, plum grove and lawn; the south gate the sports plaza and playgrounds. Keiyo Road's Matsugaoka interchange is 5-7 minutes away by car.
The mound in the park is called Araku Kofun (荒久古墳), not Araku; it stands in the culture zone beside the sculpture garden and Western-style garden. The park occupies the former site of the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries livestock experiment station, and its 53.7 hectares are about the size of Tokyo Disneyland.
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