Submitted by Olympia Kato Sister City Association
On July 31, 2023, a delegation from Kato, Japan will be visiting their sister city of Olympia, Washington. Our delegation from Olympia will be hosting a home stay with our visitors and they will be touring and visiting various places within the Puget Sound area.
Our sister city relationship is a broad-based, long-term partnership between two communities from two countries. A relationship is officially recognized after the highest elected or appointed official from both communities has completed an agreement to become sister cities.
As a historical note, our two cities began in 1981 and it was then known as the Olympia-Yashiro Sister City Association. On March 20, 2006, Yashiro, along with the towns of Takino and Tōjō (all from Katō District in Japan), was merged to create the city of Katō. Hence that our organization is known as the Olympia-Kato Sister City Association.
When the Fourth Avenue bridge in Olympia was built in 1921, this was to replace a faulty drawbridge, the bridge accommodated a trolley line from downtown to West Olympia, as well as foot, bicycle, and automobile traffic. After the bridge had sustained damage from the 2001 Nisqually Quake, it was reopened and dedicated in 2004 as the Olympia-Yashiro Friendship Bridge.
We plan to have a delegation from Olympia to visit Kato, Japan in 2024.
