In front of Togenuki Jizo, "Grandma's Harajuku" — a Showa-era shopping street that now draws younger visitors too
The closest neighborhoods in the same city.
Kogan-ji is commonly called "Togenuki Jizo," the thorn-removing Jizo. Every month, days with a 4 are ennichi festival days, and the 24th of January, May, and September are reitaisai grand festival days, when more visitors come than usual. Many older women come to visit, so it has the nickname "Grandma's Harajuku".
The street right in front of the temple gate is Jizo-dori shopping street, about 800 meters long, running all the way from Sugamo Station to the Toden streetcar's Koshinzuka stop, though the stop itself lies outside the neighborhood.
The street has sweet shops, restaurants, wagashi shops, and clothing stores for older people, mostly aimed at seniors. After some time during the pandemic, this street with its Showa-retro feel, not taken over by chain stores, gradually became a place young people come to as well.
People living in this neighborhood aren't actually as old as the nickname suggests: in 2020, about 18% were 65 or older, slightly lower than Toshima City overall, while the share under 15 was slightly higher. Nearly six out of every ten households are single-person households, and about 60% of homes are rented.
Healthcare ranks 8th among 395 neighborhoods in Tokyo, the highest-ranking category for this neighborhood; daily shopping ranks 10th.
Sugamo Station has the JR Yamanote Line and the Toei Mita Line. Exit A3 of the Mita Line has a slow-moving escalator that travels only 20 meters per minute, installed to prevent falls among older people.
Smoking is banned on the shopping street, AEDs have been installed, and the local shinkin bank opens its rest area and restrooms for free. Older people who meet and become friends on this street have a special term for themselves, meaning "Sugamo friends".
The Toei-run Somei Cemetery has about 100 Somei Yoshino cherry trees planted, with part of the walking path lined with cherry trees; part of the grounds lies outside the neighborhood.
On ennichi festival days and reitaisai grand festival days, more visitors come to Kogan-ji than usual. Cars can only enter this street one-way from the direction of Sugamo Station, and at certain times cars are banned entirely.
From our street photos, greenery ranks 373rd, the weakest category for this neighborhood.
When Kogan-ji was founded in 1596, it stood east of Kanda Myojin. The Meireki Fire of 1657 burned the temple down, after which it moved to Shitaya; in 1891, following a notice from Tokyo Prefecture, it moved to its current site in Sugamo.
The shopping street in front of the temple gate was originally part of the Nakasendo; it only became known as the Old Nakasendo after National Route 17 opened. Sugamo Station opened in 1903, and the Mita Line reached here in 1968.
Between 2019 and 2021, the shopping street had its power lines put underground, and the symbolic arch at the entrance was also replaced with a new one.
Compared with the 395 Tokyo neighborhoods in this guide (scores 0–10)
Hospitals with inpatient beds (2020 data), public elementary and junior high schools whose catchment covers this area, high schools and universities within 1 km, stations, parks of 1 ha or more, and large shopping malls and department stores. Many Tokyo junior high students attend private schools, so junior high catchments are only a guide.
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How to read it: yellow = poor, blue = good; grey = not enough data
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