The city of Kobe announced a 1999 fiscal year budget proposal Friday of just over 2.07 trillion yen, a 2.9 percent increase over the previous year's budget of 2.01 trillion yen.
The budget plan places priority on boosting the dwindling local economy rather than taking more steps for postquake recovery. "Four years have passed since the Great Hanshin Earthquake and the city's infrastructure has been largely rebuilt. Private homes are in ample supply, and efforts to relocate those still in temporary housing facilities into permanent housing are moving forward steadily," said Mayor Kazutoshi Sasayama at a press conference Friday.
In order to assist an estimated 2,000 Kobe families still in temporary housing, 15.3 billion yen has been allocated to cover moving expenses. The city had planned to close the remaining temporary housing facilities by the end of March. But officials said Friday that they would extend the deadline until the end of June. "After we've finished the move into permanent housing, we must continue to work to revive the local economy as quickly as possible," Sasayama said.