Historic Daimaru Shinsaibashi Store Facade to be Preserved
Last year, J. Front Retailing announced plans to redevelop the historic 82-year old Daimaru Shinsaibashi Department Store in Osaka. The ageing building was becoming increasingly cost and difficult to maintain, and was short on floor space.
Original redevelopment plans involved razing the building. After J. Front’s announcement, local architects and historians lobbied the company to preserve as much of the intricately-designed building as possible. Although redevelopment is going ahead next year, J. Front are now considering preserving the historic facade.Read more
Nagoya says arrivederci to Italian Village
On June 2, the Nagoya Port Authority announced plans to remove the last remaining structures from the former Italian Village. Demolition is expected to cost 330 million.
The Italian Village shopping mall opened in Nagoya’s port side area in 2005, the same year that Turin was announced as one of Nagoya’s sister cities. The 31,000 sqm site included a reproduction of a Venice canal complete with authentic gondolas imported from Italy, a replica of the San Marco Square, a replica of the Statue of David, and a replica of the Bocca della Verita. Many of the 80 specialty stores featured Italian goods and groceries.
The mall was developed under a private finance initiative between the Nagoya Port Authority and Cest la vie Holdings Corporation. In its first year of operations, it had over 4.2 million visitors. By 2008, this number had halved and the operators filed for bankruptcy.Read more
Kyoto carries out first forced demolition
On April 30, Kyoto City began procedures to carry out a forced demolition of an abandoned house in Kamigyo-ku. This is the first case of a forced demolition to be carried out by proxy by the city.
The single-storey wooden structure, which was over 65 years old, was at the brink of collapse. It had once been a house with a workshop space that was used for the production of Nishijin-ori textiles. There were two owners listed on the property title, one of whom had since died, and another who could not be contacted.Read more
Historic hotel in Takarazuka to be demolished
Hankyu Hanshin Holdings plan to demolish the historic Takarazuka Hotel in Takarazuka City, Hyogo Prefecture, and will build a new hotel in a separate location nearby.
The 5-storey hotel opened in 1926. It was developed by Ichizo Kobayashi, the founder of Hankyu Railway, the Takarazuka Revue and Toho, and local industrialist Kaemon Hiratsuka. Hankyu acquired the hotel a few years after it opened.Read more
Historic 84-year old apartment building in Chuo-ku under demolition
The historic Shokin Apaato in Chuo-ku, Tokyo, is being demolished to make way for a 13-storey mixed-use office and residential building.
Shokin Apaato was built in 1931, around the same time as the Dojunkai apartments. The 5-storey, reinforced concrete building was occupied by tenants up until 2013. The owner decided to rebuild as the building does not meet earthquake-resistant standards and has become too costly to maintain.Read more
Yokosuka City forcibly demolishes abandoned home
Yokosuka City began the forced demolition of an abandoned home in Higashiuraga on March 13. This is the first forced demolition to be carried out in Kanagawa Prefecture and the third in Japan.
The wooden house, which was built sometime between the Taisho and early Showa periods, had a total floor area of 25 sqm. It was in a serious state of decay, with exterior cladding and doors coming loose in past typhoons. It became vacant after the owner passed away in 1988.
In 2012 the city received a complaint about the house and had repeatedly tried to contact relatives of the current owners, but with no success. The owners of the house did not own the land, and since the house did not appear on any cadastral maps, the heirs were not subject to annual property taxes.
The house was considered a hazard to the locals who often use the pathway running in front of the house as a shortcut to the station, and in December 2014 a removal order was issued. Read more
Historic home in Kunitachi open to public before demolition
A historic home in Kunitachi City, Western Tokyo, will be open to the public for a viewing on February 8 and 9 before it is demolished.
The Takada Residence was built in 1929 ~ 1930 by physician and author Giichirou Takada. Mr. Takada moved his family from their former residence in the Akasaka Tameikesanno area in order for his eldest son to attend school in Kunitachi. This home would have been one of the original homes built when the suburb was developed in the 1920s.
The 2-storey wooden house sits on a 600 sqm block of land. It has a concrete basement (used as archives) and the house was equipped with steam heating.
Demolition is scheduled to begin at the end of March 2015.Read more