Plans for a luxury hotel to crown the top of a high-rise project in front of Sapporo Station in Hokkaido have been scrapped due to rapidly rising construction costs. The upper floors will, instead, be office space to cater to the high demand from office tenants in central Sapporo.
A 200-meter tall, 35-story tower is planned for the 1.1 hectare site on the southern side of Sapporo Station. This used to be the site of the Sapporo Seibu Department Store. Yodobashi Holdings acquired the land in 2011.
Initial cost estimates for the 210,000 sqm (2.25 million sq.ft) building were around 100 billion Yen (US$676 million), but have recently increased by 30 ~ 40% as material and labor costs surge. To keep costs at a manageable level, the hotel floors will now be office.
Construction is scheduled to start next summer.
Sources:
Television Hokkaido, September 7, 2023.
The Nikkei Shimbun, September 6, 2023.
