JAPAN TODAY
 

TOKYO — Mori Building Co on Wednesday unveiled ambitious plans for a large-scale development project surrounding the current Toranomon Hills office and retail complex in central Tokyo.

About 400 billion yen ($3.7 billion) will be spent on the construction of three towers around the existing high-rise building which opened in 2014, including a business tower, residential tower and combined station tower above a planned new subway station on the Hibiya Line.

Speaking at press conference, Mori Building CEO Shingo Tsuji said that the overall aim of the project was to “build a new international urban center where global players live, work and gather.”

The 36-floor Toranomon Hills Business Tower and 56-floor Toranomon HIlls Residential Tower are both scheduled for completion in 2019, while the Toranomon Hills Station Tower is set to open in 2022 with a partial opening of the subway station in time for the 2020 Olympics.

Each of the buildings has been designed in line with Mori Building’s “Vertical Garden City” concept, focusing on creating multi-faceted spaces that integrate different elements of the urban lifestyle.

“By building upwards in this way, we are able to create an open, green environment where working, living and playing spaces are closely set,” Tsuji said.

Upon completion, the total area of the complex will reach about 7.5 hectares, encompassing the four Toranomon Hills towers and new transport stations connecting Toranomon to Tokyo Bay and Narita and Haneda airports. Floor space will amount to 800,000 square meters, roughly the same as that of Roppongi Hills, also led by Mori Building.

The project is part of a wider revival of the Toranomon area and is the first of a total of 10 redevelopment projects planned over the coming years. It is hoped that the expanding Toranamon Hills will provide the catalyst for the revival of Tokyo as a whole, attracting foreign investment and re-establishing the city as a center for global business headquarters.

“We want to make Tokyo the world’s number one city. Through our urban development, we hope that the city can become a truly international hub with Toranomon at its heart,” Tsuji said.
Japan Today