City and community support local historical Japanese garden during COVID-19 March 8, 2021 — by Christina Chang and Carolyn Wang Photo by Christina ChangPhoto taken during the 2019 Hakone Chakai, one of the many cultural events the garden hosts, captures the Moon Bridge stretching over a pond. Saratoga’s Hakone Gardens faces decrease in revenue due to the pandemic. Known for its cascading waterfalls, tranquil ambiance and beautiful scenery, Saratoga’s historical Hakone Gardens was previously home to weddings, zen and meditation, Japanese tea ceremony classes and the city’s annual Lunar New Year celebration. However, with COVID-19 preventing many of these ceremonies from taking place, the city and community residents are working to ease the pandemic’s impact on the 100-year-old Japanese garden. Typically, the Hakone Foundation, a self-sufficient non-profit that operates Hakone Estate and Gardens on behalf of the city, hosts large events like the Hakone Chakai and the annual Lunar New Year celebration. These events are responsible for over 50 percent of the garden’s operating revenue, according to Shozo Kagoshima, executive director of the foundation. Additionally, revenue from private events such as weddings, receptions, family lifetime events, and business meetings and retreats has been cut by 60 percent in the past year. The garden has also faced challenges including struggles to find personal protective equipment like masks and gloves for their employees, as well as creating paths for visitors to follow to minimize crossing of paths while still allowing visitors to see all of the gardens. Despite this, the garden has seen some improvements in the new situation. General attendance has increased by approximately 20 percent from 2019, according to Kagoshima. The city was already supporting the garden before the pandemic, but has provided additional funding. The city allocated $500,000 for capital improvement projects over the past five years, which has provided funding for the maintenance of the garden’s structural aspects like the replacement of railings on the Cultural Exchange Center deck, retrofitting the foundation of the Moon Viewing House and funding for the upcoming Koi Pond project, among other things. To help the garden manage the ill effects of COVID-19, the city also provided Hakone with grants to support their operational needs and budget. This year, on top of the normal budget allocations, the city has put money aside for COVID-19 relief, including $40,000 to the Hakone Foundation, according to mayor Yan Zhao. “Normally we don’t have this amount of funds to give out, so it’s kind of a big burden on the city,” Zhao said. “It’s unexpected in our budget, but it’s the right thing to do to help people during this difficult time.” Hakone Gardens holds a special place in many students’ hearts, due to the many memorable experiences they have had there. Sophomore Carolyn Pyun has been to Hakone Gardens on multiple occasions for Saratoga Youth Commision work during Lunar New Year, although she said her favorite visits were with family when her grandma visited from Korea. “I was just awed that there is a place that's so beautiful in our city and it's like a slice from another country because it looks so different,” Pyun said. “When I think of Hakone Gardens, the first thing that comes to my mind is the absolutely beautiful nature of it: the ponds, trees, flowers, especially the turtles — it's very relaxing and aesthetically pleasing.” Her favorite feature of the garden is the wooden Moon Bridge, which stretches over a pond. “The view is so pretty there,” Pyun said. “It's like some scene from a Korean drama.” Freshman Minh Do also enjoys his trips to the Japanese gardens, especially the dim sum, music performances, and Gong Fu during their Lunar New Year festival. Because his family has a membership at Hakone, they visit regularly for cultural events. Despite the garden’s struggles, local city governments and residents like Pyun and Do have played a vital role in keeping Hakone gardens going during the pandemic. “Our supporters have been very generous with their donations to help make up for some of the loss of revenue,” Kagoshima said. Currently, the Hakone Foundation is looking into maintenance for their garden, including their well-known koi pond. In the future, they are planning to start a campaign to fundraise for a $4-million project to redesign the pond in order to provide a safer and healthier environment for the koi and provide better accessibility for visitors. “Despite the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, we feel confident that Hakone is in a good position financially and operationally to continue providing the community with the opportunity to visit the gardens,” Kagoshima said. “By this time next year, we hope that we will be able to get back to pre-COVID-19 operations.” 11 views this weekAbout the contributorsChristina ChangChristina Chang, Class of 2023, is an Editor-In-Chief of the '22-'23 Falcon staff. Previously, she served as a Sports Editor and local events beat writer for the '21-'22 staff and a Reporter and Layout Artist for the '20-'21 staff. During her time with The Falcon, she covered community news like the breakdown of city budget allocations and the first Blossom Festival post-COVID; wrote a series addressing mental health; profiled teacher friendships amid the pandemic; reported on the return of in-person learning and sports after shelter-in-place; and authored a narrative reflecting on her own basketball journey of eight years. Christina was named one of four finalists for Youth Journalism International's 2023 Student Journalist of the Year and one of seven finalists for the National Scholastic Press Association's 2022 Writer of the Year. She has received 23 journalism awards at the international, national and regional levels; her works have been recognized by Youth Journalism International, National Scholastic Press Association, Journalism Education Association of Northern California, Scholastic Art & Writing Awards and Santa Clara University. To further her journalism experience, she attended workshops during summer 2022 hosted by the Columbia Scholastic Press Association, California Scholastic Press Association and Stanford Daily. She will fondly remember The Falcon as a highlight of her high school years, and will forever cherish the memories created during monthly deadline nights, enjoying catered food and chatting with fellow staff members while rushing to finish each print edition. Outside of the J-room, she enjoys getting involved in the community through volunteering with local nonprofits and school clubs as well as exploring her interests and creativity through art.Carolyn WangCarolyn Wang, Class of ‘23, is an Editor-in-Chief of the Saratoga Falcon for the 2022-23 school year. Previously, she was the School Scope Editor between 2021-22 and an Assistant Graphics Editor, Layout Artist and Reporter between 2020-21. Over her three years on staff, she has covered stories ranging from inflation's effects on senior citizens to the current state of the journalism industry, anti-vaccine protests, the history of Saratoga's principals, Cross Country and Track & Field beats, and other local and schoolwide news. She's been recognized for her journalism work by the Journalism Education Association of Northern California and Scholastic Art & Writing Awards. Outside of the J-Room, Carolyn enjoys all-things music, running and Disney-related.