Amid the nationwide struggle to address the dearth of day care facilities, plans to open a new facility in Ichikawa, Chiba Prefecture, this month came to a grinding halt after residents claimed the noise created by the children would be too "annoying," officials said Tuesday.

"If completed, it would have greatly helped the city (to address the day care shortage)," an official in the municipal government's nursery facility planning division told The Japan Times.

The official said there was also opposition to the plan because of fears that a narrow road running along the planned site would be dangerous for children arriving and departing the facility.

"Among people who were protesting against the construction were families with children," the official said, adding that some of those opposing the construction expressed such safety concerns. "It won't be possible to build such a facility in the same area."

According to the official, as of April 2015, the city had 373 children on its waiting list for day care centers — the ninth most in the nation.

A social welfare organization from the neighboring city of Matsudo had planned to open the day care center on April 1 in a residential area of Ichikawa. Preparations had been underway to accept 108 children up to 5 years old.

But despite the city's backing, the organization, called Narumikai, failed to secure the support of the local community. Protests began last August when Narumikai put up a sign to inform residents of the construction plans.

The organization and the city held numerous meetings starting in October in hopes of convincing residents in nearby apartments and houses to accept the plan, but to no avail.

As a result, construction never began and the organization decided last month to drop the plan altogether.

"It's sad that this is what hinders the improvement of day care services," wrote a Twitter user using the handle @sukucale. "Children are those who build the country."

Another user registered with the handle @satousyouji said, "As a Japanese, I feel sad" and posed a question "is this what the Japanese people really want?"

A user with the handle @s_k_r_ko responded: "And the (government) wants to solve Japan's shrinking population problems. Is this a joke?"

The news came weeks after an anonymous blogger brought into the limelight the continuing struggle that mothers in the country face over the lack of day care facilities. The post sparked a national movement, with demonstrations and campaigns urging the government to tackle the issue.