Did you know Lawrence has sister cities throughout the world? Once of those cities is Hiratsuka, Japan. In the year of 2000 the Japanese Friendship Garden was opened.
It started in 1995 the city of Hiratsuka presented a gift of $5000 to the city of Lawrence for the 5 year anniversary of being sister cities. The City of Lawrence matched the funding amount. $15,000 of additional funds were raised by volunteers in a fund raiser called “Sister City Garden Gala.”
The City of Hiratsuka even sent representatives to help design and work on the garden. Hiratsuka shipped 2 major pieces from Japan. One is a lantern and a 15’ stone tower to be displayed.
On October 26th 2000 Hiratsuka sent 50 delegates including the Mayor, Itsuo Yoshino, to Lawrence for a dedication ceremony. The garden represents the cultural ties with Hiratsuka and Lawrence.
The Japanese Friendship Garden is about 90 feet by 92 feet. The garden sits at 1045 Mass Street in Downtown Lawrence on the north side of Watkins Community Museum.
The Japanese Friendship Garden is not huge and a lot of people do not even know it is there. The location is a nice place to relax in the middle of Downtown Lawrence. It has been used for wedding photos.
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