Short answers, pulled from the story.
Kichijōji's combination of a compact shopping district, access to Inokashira Park, and fast rail connections to central Tokyo has made it consistently desirable. CNN GO magazine polls have ranked it the top place Japanese people want to live every year since the 1990s.
The name traces to Kichijō-ji Temple, which stood in Bunkyō City, Tokyo, before being destroyed by fire in 1657. That temple took its name from Lakshmi, the Hindu and Buddhist goddess known in Japan as Kichijōten. Displaced residents who resettled in what is now Musashino named their new village after the temple they had lost.
The Great Fire of Meireki in 1657 destroyed the town in front of the Suwazan Kichijō-ji Temple gate in Edo, near present-day Suidōbashi Station, displacing the community that lived there. The shogunate cleared the land for daimyō residences. The displaced residents were resettled in what became the present-day neighborhood, carrying the name Kichijōji with them.
Inokashira Park lies south of Kichijōji Station and is the source of the Kanda River. It features a large central lake and is known for hanami, the spring tradition of gathering under cherry blossoms. The Ghibli Museum is located in the neighboring city of Mitaka, near the park.
The manga and anime companies Coamix and Bee Train have their headquarters in Kichijōji. Studio Ghibli was also previously based in the neighborhood before relocating.
The Studio Ghibli film Ocean Waves opens and closes at Kichijōji Station. Video games set there include Shin Megami Tensei and Persona 5 Royal, which features the neighborhood as a location where players meet Kasumi Yoshizawa and Goro Akechi. Manga series set in Kichijōji include Tokyo Tribes by Santa Inoue, Great Teacher Onizuka by Toru Fujisawa, and Is Kichijōji the Only Place to Live? by Hirochi Maki.