pstrongThe US$4b development seeks to become an international hub for foreigners and VCs./strong/p pJapan’s newest composite redevelopment Azabudai Hills may just serve as an important cornerstone to Tokyo’s ambitions of being seen as an attractive international destination./p pThe site was still an aging district of old houses.
Japan’s newest composite redevelopment Azabudai Hills may just serve as an important cornerstone to Tokyo’s ambitions of being seen as an attractive international destination.
Urban redeveloper Mori Building Co. hopes that its newest brainchild Azabudai Hills will become the choice living and working destination for both Japanese people and foreign expats– and for startups looking to scale operations in Tokyo, a spokesperson of the company told Singapore Business Review.What differentiates Azabudai Hills from the typical residential or office development is its commitment to make the 8.1-hectare space central to Tokyo’s booming startup industry.
This is a win-win situation for either side, as the complex is notably near CIC Tokyo, a self-touted”innovation” campus offering flexible working spaces for startups, which is currently home to 250 companies, investors, and government offices. The British School in Tokyo is also being set-up within the development, as well as a nursery. Keio University Hospital’s Center for Preventive Care has also moved within the complex, and will test operations beginning November 6.Before full-time construction of the US$4b development could commence in 2019, however, the Azabudai Hills project traces its roots back to 1989. Back then, the site was–in Mori Building Co.
Heatherwick is known for his designs that balance modern architecture and green spaces, a feature that is very much present in Azabudai Hills: when the development opens in November, visitors and residents will get to enjoy a combined total of 2.4 hectares of green areas– including vertical gardens.This was not urban landscape redeveloper Mori Building’s first venture into redeveloping– or by its spokesperson’s own terms, revitalizing– old properties in Tokyo.