Vol. 30 Autumn 2004

Perspective drawing of the exterior of the Muromachi Mitsui Shinkan Building The Muromachi Mitsui Shinkan Building (under construction) as seen from the Mitsui Honkan Building, an Important Cultural Property Perspective drawing of the building interior. The design achieves harmony between tradition and progress.

For over 400 years, Tokyo's Nihombashi area has been a center of history, culture, and commerce. Even today, this storied neighborhood remains home to many famous, long-established traditional shops and historical edifices. Now, with the enthusiastic cooperation of local businesses and merchant associations, a bold experiment in urban redevelopment that accentuates Nihombashi's distinctive flavor is underway. The Muromachi Mitsui Shinkan Building (provisional name) is a highrise building complex Kajima is constructing in Nihombashi- Muromachi 2-chome. An attempt to intentionally preserve fine old structures and sights of cultural value is gaining momentum in a number of Tokyo's busy commercial districts. The Tokyo metropolitan government has supported this movement by recently instituting a legal framework that attempts to strike a balance between commercial viability and cultural preservation. Tokyo's Registered Important Cultural Properties Specific District System makes it possible to effectively use an increase in the floor area ratio to leave in place portions of famous works of architecture while redeveloping their surroundings. As the first project to which the new system has been applied, the Muromachi Mitsui Shinkan Building is symbolic of redevelopment that preserves the traditional. Undertaken by a consortium that includes Mitsui Fudosan Co., Ltd., one of Japan's leading commercial real estate companies, this project involves constructing a Class A Building complex while preserving the Mitsui Honkan Building, a stately structure erected in 1929 that is registered as an Important Cultural Property. Construction of the 39-story Muromachi Mitsui Shinkan Building began in May 2002 and has already progressed to the point where the entire structure can be seen. The imposing walls of the lower stories, designed to blend in with the adjacent Mitsui Honkan Building, give way to a futuristic upper story design that features extensive use of glass. While the interior of the building also achieves continuity and a sense of unity with the Mitsui Honkan Building, this highly functional space was designed to cutting-edge specifications that combine support for sophisticated telecommunications, advanced security systems, and earthquake resistance. The Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group of Hong Kong has chosen the new building as the site for its first hotel in Japan, a luxury hotel that will occupy the upper floors of the structure. This world-renowned hotel operator's participation in the project promises to rejuvenate the image of Nihombashi, which is strongly associated with traditional shops and wholesalers. Kajima also conducted a project similar to the Muromachi Mitsui Shinkan Building in 2000 when it constructed the Yokohama Media and Communications Center in the port district of Yokohama. This project involved refurbishing and reinforcing against earthquakes two buildings of historical importance constructed in 1929 and erecting a 12-story intelligent building to integrate the two structures. As these projects illustrate, considering ways of preserving the appearance of cityscapes rich in history is an important element of urban redevelopment in Japan today. And, preserving for future generations the architectural fruits of Japanese culture requires wisdom and ingenuity. For example, today's refurbishment needs go far beyond the renewal of single buildings; they include upgrading the functionality and quality of entire groups of buildings, the preservation and restoration of historical buildings, and the accommodation of changes in building function or purpose of use. Conservation and conversion also requires the adaptation of existing buildings to meet changes in the surrounding areas or changing public needs. Of course the latest urban renewal projects such as Roppongi Hills, Shiodome Sio-Site and Shinagawa Redevelopment Area in Tokyo are getting attention because series of attractive new buildings with the latest features and amenities were built. However, the trend toward urban development that preserves and utilizes structures of historic value such as Nihombashi and Yokohama is gaining momentum in many places around Japan by comfortably blending the past and future. As Japan's leading contractor, Kajima is pleased to be part of The Muromachi Mitsui Shinkan Building project in Nihombashi. Kajima will continue to help preserve and revitalize a historical landmark buildings and help pass on to the next generation by utilizing our latest construction technologies and know-how. The project is expected to be completed in July 2005.

Nihombashi: 400 Years at the Center of Japan's Culture and Economy When the military leader and statesman Tokugawa Ieyasu entered the fishing village of Edo (the former name for Tokyo) in 1590, construction of the town that sprang up around his castle began in the Nihombashi area, a tract of land wedged between the outer moat of Edo Castle (now the Imperial Palace) and the canal at Higashi-no- Kaedegawa (now Nihombashi 3-chome). The name Nihombashi, literally meaning "Japan Bridge," was taken from the famous wooden bridge that spans the Nihombashi River, a tributary of the Kanda River. When Edo became the seat of the Tokugawa Shogunate founded by Ieyasu in 1603, Nihombashi was designated by the shogunate as the starting point of five major roads that were to extend across Japan. The area grew rapidly in prosperity and became home to moneychangers, wholesalers, and large retail merchants, including the Echigo-ya kimono and drapery shop (now Mitsukoshi Department Store and the predecessor of the Mitsui Group). Storehouses containing products from many countries came to line the banks of the Nihombashi River. In a few brief years, the Nihombashi area had developed into the center not only of the castle town of Edo, but of Japan's economy as well. When the Meiji Restoration brought down the curtain on the Tokugawa Shogunate in 1868, the name Edo was changed to Tokyo. As the new capital became the center of Japan's government and economy, Nihombashi transformed itself into a business district that attracted numerous modern companies. Although Nihombashi was completely destroyed in the massive air raids of March 1945, after the war it quickly recovered, regained its prewar vitality, and continued to develop. The wooden Nihombashi Bridge was rebuilt in 1911 into a Renaissance-style stone bridge as a symbol of the imperial capital, and remains standing to this day. Hiroshige Utagawa (1797-1858) "Fifty-Three Stations of Tokaido: Morning Scene at Nihombashi" Shizuoka Prefectural Museum of Art An expressway now passes directly over the Nihombashi Bridge. However, a movement to restore the bridge to its former splendor is gaining support.

Vol. 30 Autumn 2004 Happy Union of a Historic Landmark and Contemporary Office Building Kajima around the World

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