Kobe Bay Sheraton Hotel Sold
The Kobe Bay Sheraton Hotel and Towers on Rokko Island will be sold to a hotel and ryokan (Japanese-style hotel) operator called Hotel New Awaji. The hotel name will not be changed and will continue to operate as normal.
The Bay Sheraton was opened in June, 1992. Up until 2005 it was owned by a subsidiary of JTB Corporation, however the long-lasting effects of the 1995 Hanshin earthquake and economic recession made the hotel unprofitable and it was sold to the American investment company, Lone Star Group. It is currently being operated by a subsidiary of Lone Star. Hotel New Awaji will also purchase the subsidiary and will continue to operate the hotel without any disruptions.Read more
[Foreclosed] Christy Homes Nishiazabu
Court Evaluation: 364,770,000 Yen (4.73 million USD)
*Update: The winning bid was 488,800,000 Yen (6.3 million USD). A total of 16 bids were made on the property and the winning bidder was a corporate buyer. By 2013, the building had been demolished.
Christy Homes Nishiazabu is a 3-storey apartment building located right next-door to the Azabu Catholic Church in Nishiazabu 3 Chome. This apartment building looks like a high-end expat apartment building from the outside, but there are some serious flaws behind the surface which would, and mostly likely have, put off most buyers.Read more
Nakagin Capsule on display at Roppongi Hills
As part of Mori Art Museum's latest exhibition called "Metabolism, The City of the Future", a Nakagin Capsule is currently on display outside Mori Crosspoint along Roppongi Dori avenue. The capsule is identical to the ones used in the Nakagin Capsule Tower Building in Ginza. Read more about the apartment building here. There is also a display capsule at the bottom of the Nakagin Capsule Tower.Read more
Meiji-era storehouse to be torn down in Miyagi
After sustaining serious structural damage during the March 11 Tohoku earthquake, the Matsuyama Zashiki-Kura* in Osaki City, Miyagi Prefecture, will be demolished by the end of the year. The City said that a shortage of building materials and high repair costs mean it is not possible to restore the property.Read more
And the most desirable area in Tokyo is…
Major 7 announced the results of their latest survey of the most desirable neighborhoods in Tokyo and the Kansai area. The data is collected by Mitsubishi Estate, Daikyo and 5 other major condominium developers. In Tokyo, Kichijoji was in top spot for the fourth consecutive year. Ashiya was number one in Kansai for the seventh consecutive year.Read more
Demolition starts on Hiroo's Hanezawa Garden
Mitsubishi Estate began demolishing the former residence of Yoshikoto Nakamura, also known as the Hanezawa Garden, in Hiroo on October 3rd despite countless attempts by local residents to preserve the house and Japanese gardens dating back to 1915.Read more