 In 2003, Shizuoka absorbed neighboring Shimizu City (now Shimizu Ward) to create the new and expanded city of Shizuoka, briefly becoming the largest city by land area in Japan.In 2005, it became one of Japan's "designated cities".Shizuoka City lies in central Shizuoka Prefecture, about halfway between Tokyo and Nagoya along the Tōkaidō Corridor, between Suruga Bay to the south and the Minami Alps in the north.