Ikebukuro

Toshima ward offices, Ikebukuro Station, and several shops, restaurants, and department stores are located within city limits.

East of the station, on the site of Sugamo Prison, stands Sunshine 60, which was the tallest building in Asia at the time of its construction.

Otome Road, a center for otaku culture and shopping district for anime and manga aimed at women, is located nearby.

In the Taishō and Shōwa periods, the relatively low land prices attracted artists and foreign workers, who lent a somewhat cosmopolitan atmosphere to Ikebukuro.

Outside the west exit of Ikebukuro Station near an entrance to the Fukutoshin Line is a small plaque explaining how the area used to have multiple lakes, hence the name.

It is a play on words, as "owl" (梟 fukurō) is pronounced similarly to "bag" (袋 fukuro).

[4] Public elementary and junior high schools are operated by the Toshima Ward Board of Education.