Hitachinaka, Ibaraki
Geography. Hitachinaka is located slightly northeast of central Ibaraki Prefecture and east of the capital of Mito. It consists of a lowland area around the Naka River in the south and the Pacific coast in the east. Surrounding municipalities. Ibaraki Prefecture Climate. Hitachinaka has a Humid continental climate (Köppen "Cfa") characterized by warm summers and cold winters with light snowfall. The average annual temperature in Hitachinaka is 13.8 °C. The average annual rainfall is 1415 mm with September as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around 25.2 °C, and lowest  in January, at around 3.4 °C. Demographics. Per Japanese census data, the population of Hitachinaka has steadily increased over the past century. History. The towns of Hiraiso and Minato, as well as the village of Katsuta were created within Naka District with the establishment of the modern municipalities system on April 1, 1889. Minato was renamed Nakaminato in 1938. Nakaminato had commercial fishing industry as its main industry, but the area rapidly developed into a company town of Hitachi, Katsuta was elevated to town status in 1940. During World War II, the area was subject to air raids and  to shelling by Allied warships due to its numerous factories producing war-related materials. On March 31, 1954, the towns of Nakaminato and Hiraiso merged, forming the city of Nakaminato. Katsuta was raised to city status on November 1 of the same year. The two cities merged on November 1, 1994, to form the city of Hitachinaka. Government. Hitachinaka has a mayor-council form of government with a directly elected mayor and a unicameral city council of 25 members. Hitachinaka contributes three members to the Ibaraki Prefectural Assembly. In terms of national politics, the city is part of Ibaraki 4th  district of the lower house of the Diet of Japan. Economy. Hitachinaka developed primarily as a company town for Hitachi group factories, and Hitachi remains the primary employer. Secondary industries include commercial fishing, agriculture and seasonal tourism. Education. Hitachinaka has 20 public elementary schools and nine public middle schools operated by the city government, and five public high school operated by the Ibaraki Prefectural Board of Education. The prefecture also operates one technical institute and one special education school for the handicapped. Transportation. Railway. JR East –Jōban Line Hitachinaka Seaside Railway – Minato Line Sister cities. Hitachinaka is twinned with: Hitachinaka