Kitakyushu City Begins Operation of Rakuriza, the Public Facilities Reservation System for Municipalities

WingArc1st Inc. and WingArcNEX Inc. are pleased to announce that Kitakyushu City (*1) has adopted Rakuriza, a public facilities reservation system for municipalities, and will begin operation on 1 April 2026.

This case study is part of The Kitakyushu Model (*2), which WingArc has been promoting through the activities of the Rural Revitalization Lab. The system has been developed under a commission from Kitakyushu City, which will be the first location to adopt Rakuriza.

Background
Kitakyushu City operates a variety of public facilities, including civic centers, sports facilities, cultural facilities, and community centers, and each facility has its own complex operations, including different reservation methods, screening requirements, usage classifications, and fee structures. The city identified a need to develop the systems to reduce the workload of facility managers and improve public services.

WingArc collaborated with Kitakyushu City to conduct two demonstration experiments in 2025. We conducted interviews with residents and facility managers, and visited facilities, to develop Rakuriza, a public facilities reservation system tailored to meet the operational needs of Kitakyushu City.

Features of Rakuriza
Rakuriza allows for smooth reservations for a variety of public facilities, including:

• Sports facilities (gymnasiums, grounds, stadiums, etc.)
• Cultural and lifelong learning facilities (civic halls, lifelong learning centers, theaters, halls, etc.)
• Community facilities (civic centers, community centers)
• Funeral halls
• Campsites
• Earthquake simulation vehicles, sewerage purification centers (for social studies field trips), etc.

A major feature of this system is its flexibility in accommodating the different reservation screening procedures (e.g., lottery/first-come, first-served), usage classifications, and fee structures of each facility.

It also complies with the "Digital Regional Revitalization Model Specifications" published by the Digital Agency, making it a foundation that can accommodate future system changes and functional expansions.

https://www.wingarc-nex.com/business/rakuriza/index.html (Japanese)

From demonstration experiments to actual operation
The full-scale operation, which will begin on 1 April has been designed based on the knowledge gained from the demonstration experiment, with an emphasis on operability and reduced operational load. Facility managers can change settings without coding, and citizens can make facility reservations using an easy-to-understand user interface. The platform is being gradually rolled out to 258 facilities in Kitakyushu City, simultaneously improving convenience for residents and streamlining facility operations.

Future outlook
WingArc and WingArcNEX, as partners under a collaboration agreement with Kitakyushu City, will continue to support the improvement and development of the system after its implementation, and will contribute to the promotion of local government digital transformation.



(*1) Mayor: Kazuhisa Takeuchi, Population: 900,494 as of September 1, 2025
(*2) The Rural Revitalization Lab was opened in Kitakyushu.
Creating The Kitakyushu Model to promote DX/GX in the region through over 20 projects co-created by industry, government, and academia.
https://corp.wingarc.com/en/public/202408/news2762.html