Kyoto may relax local hotel laws
On August 31, Kyoto City released a draft plan for potentially relaxing hotel laws in the city. With record tourist numbers, the city is anticipating a need for 6,000 additional beds by 2020. If approved, the relaxed rules could possibly allow hotels in zones where they were previously prohibited, provided strict obligations are met.
In 2015, the city welcomed 3.16 million foreign tourists to its hotels and is expecting this number to reach 4.4 million in 2020. To cater to the increase in both foreign and domestic visitors, 10,000 beds would be required. Hotels with 4,000 beds are already planned or under construction in the city.Read more
Atami loses two hotels in August
Two reasonably large hotels in the beachside hot spring resort area of Atami in Shizuoka Prefecture closed their doors last month.
Atami Korakuen Hotel Misaki-kan Annex
Atami Korakuen Hotel closed their Misaki-kan annex building last month, ending 65 years of operations. The hotel will continue to operate in their newer building next-door, while the former annex building will be demolished and replaced with new facilities in time for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.Read more
Jingumae designer building sold for 9 billion Yen
ORIX JREIT Inc. announced that they will be acquiring the trust beneficiary rights to the Terrazza Aoyama building in Jingumae at the end of September. The acquisition price is 9 billion Yen (approx. 87 million USD), excluding tax, resulting in a net operating income of 4.2%. The seller was RD Legend Alpha SPC.
The building is located alongside Gaien Nishi Street and is 400 meters from the Olympic Stadium site and 650 meters from Gaienmae Station on the Ginza Subway Line.Read more
Tokyo apartment sales in August 2016
The following is a selection of apartments that were sold in central Tokyo during the month of August 2016:Read more
Historic Rokkosan Hotel sold to car importer
The 87-year old Rokkosan Hotel in Hyogo Prefecture has been sold to Osaka-based car importer Hakko Group for an undisclosed price. The sale includes the land and both the historic hotel and the adjacent, newer 45-room hotel building. This is the first hotel acquisition for the company. They plan to preserve the historic building and possibly re-open it next year. The newer building next-door will be demolished and replaced with new accommodation as well as multi-purpose hall facilities. In the meantime the hotel will continue to be operated by Hankyu Hanshin Hotels.Read more
Osaka government building looking for hotel to fill up empty floors
Plagued by high vacancy rates and high maintenance costs, Japan’s fourth tallest building is looking for a hotel to occupy its empty floors.
The Osaka Prefectural Government Sakishima Building is 40% vacant, with the remaining space largely taken up by government departments and private companies. The 55-storey building is inconveniently located on a man-made island in Osaka Bay with poor transport options. Additional concerns about earthquake risks have deterred potential tenants.
Osaka Prefectural Governor Ichiro Matsui announced that the government is considering appealing to a hotel operator to take up the vacant floors. The prefecture spends approximately 400 million Yen per year maintaining the building. If the 7th ~ 17th floors are occupied by a hotel, the building’s occupancy rate could reach 80%.Read more