Japan opened a new front in its integrated resort (IR) race on October 1, 2026, as Ōtō Mayor Joji Nagahara defended before residents a JPY1 trillion (roughly $6.7 billion) project featuring a casino, luxury hotels, restaurants and retail, which he estimates could generate JPY650 billion (about $4.3 billion) annually and attract 13 million visitors. The public presentation took place on September 30 in the town of fewer than 5,000 residents, located in Tagawa District, Fukuoka Prefecture.
Nagahara is positioning the IR as a response to decades of population decline and economic deterioration following the collapse of the local coal-mining industry. A preliminary stage of the project had also estimated the creation of around 7,000 jobs. The mayor said national regulation would mitigate the casino’s social risks and stated that he would resign if serious gambling-addiction problems emerged in connection with the resort.
Seitaro Hattori
The municipality is already holding exploratory discussions with potential operators, although no company has been officially identified. Factors under review include access to Fukuoka and Kitakyushu airports and the ability to connect the resort with tourist destinations in Oita and Kumamoto.
Norio Kimura
The immediate obstacle is political and regulatory; Ōtō cannot directly apply for a national licence. Under Japan’s IR Development Act, an application must be submitted by a prefecture or designated city together with a private operator. Nagahara aims to secure the support of the Fukuoka Prefectural Assembly before December 2026. Governor Seitaro Hattori, in office as of September, has said any proposal must weigh both economic benefits and social impacts.
Japan will accept new IR applications between May and November 2027. The law allows a maximum of three IR areas; only Osaka-Yumeshima has been approved so far, potentially leaving two slots available. National oversight falls to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT) and the Japan Tourism Agency, whose current Commissioner is Norio Kimura, in office since August 2026.
