Hotel Okura Tokyo to be redeveloped
Yesterday it was announced that the Hotel Okura Tokyo in Toranomon, Minato-ku, will be redeveloped. The new hotel is expected to be completed in time for the 2020 Summer Olympics.
The current 408-room hotel was completed in 1962 - two years before Tokyo hosted the 1964 Summer Olympics. The annex building was completed in 1973. It has been a landmark hotel and has hosted numerous foreign dignitaries and VIPs, the most recent being US President Obama who stayed in the hotel during his visit to Tokyo in April.Read more
Japan Pearl Center at risk of demolition
The owners of the Japan Pearl Center building, a well-known modernist building in Kobe’s old foreign settlement area, recently announced that they are considering demolishing the 62-year old building.
The four-storey building was designed by architect Yoshimitsu Mitsuyasu completed in 1952. It was built by Hyogo Prefecture as a centre for the local pearl industry. It was fitted out with fluorescent lighting, which was very new at the time. The building survived the 1995 Great Hanshin earthquake which devastated much of the city. Read more
Historic Shinsaibashi Daimaru store to be demolished
J. Front Retailing recently announced plans to redevelop the 81-year old Daimaru Department Store in Shinsaibashi, Osaka.
The store was designed by US-born architect William Merrell Vories and completed in 1933. Design-wise, the building is considered to be the best department store in Japan. It is a well-known example of ‘Taisho Modern’ architecture which is a mix of art deco and neo-gothic styles. In 2003, it made the DOCOMOMO Japan list of the top 100 modern buildings in the country. Read more
Tohoku’s traditional homes slowly vanishing
Repair bills up to 100 million Yen or more
Yoichi Haryu, 57, owns a 2-storey home and storehouse in Wakabayashi-ku, Sendai City. The buildings date back to the late Meiji ~ early Showa era. The 2011 earthquake caused the beams to twist and bend and the wooden posts to twist and come unstuck.Read more
Akasaka Twin Tower demolition to begin next month
After several years of delays, Mori Trust will finally begin their redevelopment of the Akasaka Twin Tower buildings near Tameikesanno Station in Tokyo.
Taisei Corporation will begin demolition work of the 31-year old buildings in mid-May.
Former Kobe Sumitomo Building to be demolished
The former Kobe Sumitomo Building in Kobe is going to be demolished this month.
Built in 1934, the 3-storey building was originally the Kobe branch of the Sumitomo Bank. It was a landmark in the former foreign settlement area around Motomachi.Read more
Fault discovered in Kawasaki apartment building
In what looks to be a disturbing trend, another apartment building under construction has been found to have a serious defect. It was announced on March 31 that a high-rise condominium in Kawasaki City would be partially demolished and rebuilt after cracks were found on concrete pillars on the fourth floor.
Construction had reached the 7th floor when it was discovered that the extra load of the floors was putting too much strain on the 4th floor structural columns causing them to crack and split. Read more