tokyo's toranomon-azabudai district to feature work by pelli clarke pelli + heatherwick studio

more details have been announced detailing the ‘toranomon-azabudai’ district currently under construction in tokyo. conceived as a ‘modern urban village’, the masterplan includes three towers designed by pelli clarke pelli architects and a landscaped public realm by heatherwick studio. meanwhile, the development’s retail space will be designed by sou fujimoto architects. comprising offices, residences, a hotel, an international school, retail outlets, restaurants, and cultural facilities, the development broke ground in august 2019 and is set to complete in 2023.

all images by DBOX for mori building co.

mori building co., the developer behind the project, has now announced that it will partner with hotel and resort operator aman to create the ‘aman residences’ on floors 54-64 of the project’s tallest building — the ‘A district tower’. the design of the 330-meter-tall (1,083 ft) skyscraper is the work of pelli clarke pelli architects, while its interior design has been crafted by yabu pushelberg.

meanwhile, floors 1-13 of the adjacent ‘B-2 district tower’ will contain a hotel from janu, aman’s luxury hotel brand. the hotel will be designed by malaysian firm denniston, under the leadership of jean-michel gathy. in addition to approximately 120 rooms, all offering views of a central square filled with lush greenery, the hotel will boast japan’s largest spa as well as six restaurants, and a café and bars for leisure and business gatherings.

meanwhile, heatherwick studio is responsible for the project’s public realm and lower level architecture. working with a complicated, irregularly-shaped plot, the studio devised a scaled up pergola-like system to organize and unify the development’s many different elements. ‘this concept has allowed us to bring an overarching logic to an eight-hectare piece of tokyo whilst also making space for facilities such as housing, shops, hotels, spas, a school and a temple within the sections framed by the grid,’ explained thomas heatherwick when the project was first unveiled in 2019. the entire development in on track to complete in 2023.

project info:

name: toranomon-azabudai district category 1 urban redevelopment project
project executor: toranomon-azabudai district urban redevelopment association
site area: approx. 8.1 hectares
landscaped area: approx. 63,900 sqm
total floor area: approx. 861,500 sqm
buildings: residences (1,400 units), offices (approx. 213,900 sqm), retail facilities (approx. 150 shops), hotel (approx. 120 rooms), international school (approx. 14,000 sqm, british school in tokyo (planned)), central square (approx. 6,000 sqm), and cultural facilities (approx. 9,000 sqm)
greenery: approx. 2.4 hectares
parking: approx. 1,880 spaces

project cost: approx. JPY 580 billion
construction start: august, 2019
planned completion: march, 2023