Kanda, Fukuoka

Kanda (苅田町) is a town located in Miyako District, Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. , the town had an estimated population of 37,626 in 18,877 households, and a population density of 770 persons per km2. The total area of the town is 48.98 km2.

Geography
Kanda is located in northeastern Fukuoka Prefecture. It is bordered by the Gulf of Suo on the Seto Inland Sea, and to the west by the Hiraodai, which is known for its karst plateau. The southern area adjacent to Yukuhashi City is a lush rural area on the Miyako Plain.

Neighboring municipalities
Fukuoka Prefecture
 * Kitakyushu
 * Yukuhashi

Climate
Kanda has a humid subtropical climate (Köppen Cfa) characterized by warm summers and cool winters with light to no snowfall. The average annual temperature in Kanda is 15.8 °C. The average annual rainfall is 1663 mm with September as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around 26.8 °C, and lowest in January, at around 5.2 °C.

Demographics
Per Japanese census data, the population of Kanda has been steadily increasing since the 1950s.

History
The area of Kanda was part of ancient Buzen Province. During the Edo Period, the area was part of the holdings of Kokura Domain. The village of Kanda within Miyako District, Fukuoka was established on May 1, 1889, with the creation of the modern municipalities system. Kanda was raised to town status on August 1, 1924. Kanda annexed neighboring the villages of Obase and Shirakawa on January 1, 1955.

Government
Kanda has a mayor-council form of government with a directly elected mayor and a unicameral town council of 11 members. Miyako, collectively with the town of Kanda contributes one member to the Fukuoka Prefectural Assembly. In terms of national politics, the town is part of the Fukuoka 11th district of the lower house of the Diet of Japan.

Future merger
A majority of local residents favor remaining an independent municipality, but voices calling for a merger with the neighboring city of Kitakyūshū remain.

Economy
Kanda belongs to the Kitakyushu metropolitan area and serves partly as a commuter town with neighboring Kitakyushu City and Yukuhashi City. It is part of the Kitakyushu industrial zone (region) centered on automobiles, cement, electricity, etc., and has a large concentration of industry compared to its population size. In recent years, the automobile industry has become extremely concentrated, with the Nissan Motor Kyushu Plant (currently Nissan Motor Kyushu) starting operations in 1975 and the Toyota Motor Kyushu Kanda Plant starting operations in 2005. It is developing as an area that is responsible for the automobile industry in northern Kyushu.

Education
Kanda has six public elementary schools and two public junior high schools operated by the town government and one combined public high school operated by the Fukuoka Prefectural Board of Education. The Nishinippon Institute of Technology is also located in Kanda.

Airports

 * Kitakyushu Airport (the airport terminal is located in Kokuraminami-ku, Kitakyūshū; however half of the artificial island on which it is built is within the borders of Kanda.

Railways
JR Kyushu - Nippō Main Line
 * Kanda - Obase-Nishikōdai-mae

Highways

 * JP Expressway E10.svg Higashikyushu Expressway

Sister City relations
Samcheok, South Korea (since 1997)

Local attractions

 * Seiryu Cave, National Natural Monument
 * Ishizukayama Kofun, National Historic Site
 * Goshoyama Kofun, National Historic Site

Festivals

 * Kanda Float Festival, held annually in mid-September. The festival is famous for its 14 "fighting floats", and has been categorized as an "Intengible Folk Cultural Asset" by the Fukuoka prefecture.