Kobe City Hall 1

Kobe City is considering demolishing and rebuilding the ageing No. 2 City Hall.  Demolition could start as early as this year.

The No. 2 Building was completed in 1957. It originally had 8 floors, but the upper floors were removed after suffering catastrophic damage during the 1995 Great Hanshin Earthquake. The magnitude 7.3 earthquake caused the 6th floor of the building to collapse under the weight of the floors above. Rather than demolish the building, the 6th, 7th and 8th floors were removed, and the building went back into use from March 1996 onwards.

Kobe City Hall 1995 1

Kobe City Hall 1995 2

Images above via the Kobe University Library.

The 30-storey City Office No. 1 Building, which was built between 1987 and 1989, did not suffer any damage during the 1995 quake.

Location

6-5-1 Kanocho, Chuo-ku, Kobe City

Source: Construction News, January 15, 2016.

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