The Tokyo Metropolitan Government has selected real estate giant Mitsui Fudosan to lead a major ¥900bn (£4.67bn/€5.43bn/$5.81bn) project, focused on the development of a new 50,000-capacity stadium, that intends to transform the former site of the Tsukiji fish market.
The Government owns the approximately 20-hectare site, which has been empty since the fish market, a popular tourist attraction, moved to the bigger Toyosu area site in 2018. Tender documents for the transformation of the site were first published in November 2020, with proposals from applicants accepted in August last year before being reviewed by a screening committee.
Mitsui Fudosan has won out with its ‘One Park x One Town’ vision, where it will be joined in a three-pronged operating company by Toyota Fudosan and Yomiuri Shimbun Group. Other companies participating in what is an 11-strong consortium include Kajima and Taisei Corporation. Nikken Sekkei and Pacific Consultants have been engaged on the design side.
Centred on the stadium component, the project has three main functions – ‘wellness innovation’, ‘food, experiences and living’, and ‘guests and hospitality’. The complex intends to showcase and develop Japan’s world-class food, culture and art, and enhance the appeal of Tokyo as a tourist city by leveraging the history and characteristics of Tsukiji.
Utilising surrounding resources such as the Hama Rikyu Gardens and the Sumida River, Mitsui Fudosan said the project will create one of the most open spaces in Tokyo, totalling approximately 10 hectares, creating a space where people can gather, relax, and enjoy a variety of activities.
A major ‘next gen’ transportation hub will also be incorporated utilising land, sea and air mobility. This will include a port aimed at the practical application of flying cars. The whole scheme aims to achieve carbon neutrality using cutting-edge environmental technology, and various environmentally friendly initiatives.
A total of nine buildings will be developed. Along with the stadium, there are plans for a life science/commercial complex; MICE facilities and a high-quality large-scale hotel and residential facilities; a food hall; and a theatre hall with a capacity of around 1,200.
The stadium itself intends to be an indoor, all-weather facility with a basic capacity of 50,000. However, it will harness modular design so that it can scale up and down between capacities of 20,000 and 57,000, depending on the event.
It is expected to host the likes of baseball, rugby, football, American football, basketball, esports, MICE events and concerts and other entertainment offerings. Mitsui Fudosan has said it will aim to create an “optimal viewing and experience environment by changing the scene, and use cutting-edge digital technology and sound and production equipment to provide the best sense of presence, exhilaration, and immersion”.
World-class hospitality offerings are planned, with a variety of VIP rooms and the largest lounge space in Japan.
Most of the facilities, including the stadium, are expected to be completed in the 2032 financial year, with the entire project scheduled to be finished in 2038.
