I also wonder how much the pressure filled culture of not standing out has something to do with this. My impression is Japanese are under a lot more pressure to not abuse the permissiveness of the zoning laws.
If a law allows a store up to a certain size, and someone builds a store of that size, has the law been abused?
What do you mean by “abuse”?
If a law allows a store up to a certain size, and someone builds a store of that size, has the law been abused?