In One Ear: Itsy bitsy park
Published 12:15 am Thursday, March 13, 2025
- Ear: Park
Move over, Portland. Mill Ends Park, at 452 square inches, just lost the Guinness World Record for world’s smallest park to the itsiest bitsiest park in Nagaizumi, Shizuoka Prefecture — about an hour from Tokyo — which is about 371 square inches. It features an entrance, a small bench, some grass and some decorative stones.
Shuji Koyama said the park was created in 1988 to use up some free space on the road. “Back then, a staff member went on a holiday to the U.S.,” he recalled, and “they found the previous record holder for the smallest park. So they wanted to create an even smaller park.”
But the title was unofficial until recently. To make it official, they had to hire a surveyor to measure it, plus conform to all of the Guinness World Records submission guidelines.
“We want to continue maintaining the park with the community,” Koyama said, “as well as creating a landscape that is more social media friendly, so that even more people will find attractions of our town.” (Photo: Guinness World Records)