Main Hall,
Nagaoka City Tochio Community Center Tochio-re

A warm, wooden main hall that expresses the character of Tochio

The Tochio region of Nagaoka City, Niigata Prefecture, facing a declining and aging population, built "Tochio-re," a new regional exchange hub. The facility was designed to consolidate and take over the functions of the aging civic and culture centers.
The first floor houses rooms for lifelong learning and communication, including a hall and studios, while the second floor features a library and a Japanese-style room. The "Street Lounge," a common area on the first floor, is a lively space where people enjoy conversations and wait for buses. From there, if you go past the small hall, you'll find the main hall, the largest space in the facility. The bright foyer, with its large, ceiling-high windows, connects to the hall. A sliding wall can be used to partition the two rooms for different events. The hall's walls and ceiling are made of locally sourced wood, and the wall on the stage-right side features kumiko latticework designed with local specialties: temari balls and woven textiles. When used as a single space, the hall can accommodate up to 500 people. This warm, wood-themed space allows many residents to gather and enjoy community events.

Movable seating promotes diverse hall usage for residents

The main hall has a total of 330 seats. 220 seats are part of a fully automatic retractable seating system that can deploy and retract tiered seating. Planning for the Tochio-re facility began after city officials inspected the Temari Hall at the Tochio Industrial Exchange Center, "Orinasu." They saw the same type of product in use. The retractable seating system was selected for its ability to set up seating quickly and with a small number of people, making the hall more flexible. When combined with 110 stacking chairs, it is possible to create a variety of seating layouts. When the seats are deployed, the hall is used for concerts, lectures, movie screenings, and popular music shows on the stage. When the seats are retracted for a flat floor, it is used for dance practice, health and fitness sessions, and social gatherings for local groups. Thanks to the region's already active cMusic plays during these movements to serve as a warning.ommunity, combined with the new momentum to make the new facility a success, it has maintained a high utilization rate.

The comfortable seats move with a single switch and a melody

The retractable seating system is operated using a remote control. When the retraction button is pressed, the chairs fold, and each tier stacks on top of one another, fitting neatly into a dedicated storage space in the wall at the back of the hall. When the deployment button is pressed, 10 tiers of platforms move out from the front, and the folded seats rise to form the seating. Music plays during these movements to serve as an alert. A staff member at the facility commented, "The chairs move with a fun melody, so I want to show it to the local children."
The seats themselves are a simple Type 5R design with wine-red upholstery wrapped around polyurethane foam cushions. They are praised for their stable and comfortable feel despite their slim appearance, thanks to a fit-back function that allows the backrest to curve to the user's body shape and weight. They are also equipped with a gentle seat tip-up mechanism that minimizes noise and vibration when the seat is raised. The solid wood on the armrest—the only wood used on the chair—is an unsung hero of the comfortable sitting experience, providing a soft touch to sensitive fingertips.

Facility overview

"Tochio-re" is the Tochio Community Center in Nagaoka City, built to consolidate and take over the functions of the aging civic and culture centers. The name of the facility comes from a local phrase, "Tochio de ao-re," which means "Let's meet in Tochio." Since its opening in May 2022, this complex has been bustling with activity. With its library, small and large halls, and various studios, it embodies its concept as "a place for intergenerational exchange and relaxation" and "a place for community activities and learning."

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