HORIZONTV FEATURING BD+C: WATCH EPISODES ON DEMAND AT HORIZONTV

𝕏

Currently Reading

Demolition danger: Traditional Japanese architecture under threat in Tokyo district

Demolition danger: Traditional Japanese architecture under threat in Tokyo district

Preservation faces a lot of obstacles in this area, from the law to limited urban space for developers.

By BD+C Staff | July 9, 2014

Continue Reading

Oddly enough, a tree has become the center of efforts to conserve traditional architecture in Tokyo's historic Yanaka district. The 90-year-old Himalayan cedar stands on a plot purchased by an Osaka-based real estate agent. Residents are trying to block plans to bulldoze the plot as part of an ongoing effort to preserve the neighborhood.

The Yanaka area is unique because it is home to so many buildings which survived both the Great Kanto Earthquake of 1923 and World War II. The cedar plot currently up for bulldozing is surrounded by buildings from the Edo Period (1603–1867), the Taisho Era (1912-1926) and the early Showa Era (1926-1989). The Tokyo University of the Arts performed a survey showing that wooden buildings dating to 1964 or earlier in and around Yanaka have dropped in number from 748 in 1986 to 4016 in 2012.

Read the full story at The Asahi Shimbun.

Tags

Related Stories

8 eye-popping wood building projects

| Feb 5, 2013

8 eye-popping wood building projects

From 100-foot roof spans to novel reclaimed wood installations, the winners of the 2013 National Wood Design Awards push the envelope in wood design.

| Oct 15, 2012

Got a 'Great Solution'? Send it in to BD+C

Tiina Antinoja

| Sep 6, 2012

Young Spirit of Nature Wood Architecture award to Tiina Antinoja

The award is given for a student work in which wood as a building material has a central role.

| Jun 1, 2012

New BD+C University Course on Insulated Metal Panels available

By completing this course, you earn 1.0 HSW/SD AIA Learning Units.

| Jun 1, 2012

AIA 2030 Commitment Program reports new results

The full report contains participating firm demographics, energy reduction initiatives undertaken by firms, anecdotal accounts, and lessons learned.

The current Ka Makani Community Center lobby entry following rehabilitation.

| May 31, 2012

2011 Reconstruction Awards Profile: Ka Makani Community Center

An abandoned historic structure gains a new life as the focal point of a legendary military district in Hawaii.

The new hall is tracking for USGBC LEED Gold certification.

| May 31, 2012

Perkins+Will-designed engineering building at University of Buffalo opens

Clad in glass and copper-colored panels, the three-story building thrusts outward from the core of the campus to establish a new identity for the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences and the campus at large.

| May 29, 2012

Reconstruction Awards Entry Information

Download a PDF of the Entry Information at the bottom of this page.

| May 24, 2012

2012 Reconstruction Awards Entry Form

Download a PDF of the Entry Form at the bottom of this page.

| Apr 27, 2012

APA launches wood design web portal for building and design pros

Design professionals who are members of APA’s Professional Associates are automatically enrolled in the APA Designers Circle program.

Top Articles

MFPRO+ New Projects

BIG’s One High Line finally reaches completion in New York City’s West Chelsea neighborhood

Urban Planning

Bridging the gap: How early architect involvement can revolutionize a city’s capital improvement plans

Building Enclosure Systems

Winners of Building Envelope Innovation Prize focus on secondary glazing

More In Category

K-12 Schools

The importance of selecting healthy materials for K-12 projects

Clark Nexsen interior designers Anna Claire Beethoven and Brittney Just, CID, IIDA, LEED Green Associate, share why it is imperative to specify healthy building materials in K-12 schools.

Airports

Portland opens $2 billion mass timber expansion and renovation to its international airport

This month, the Portland International Airport (PDX) main terminal expansion opened to passengers. Designed by ZGF for the Port of Portland, the 1 million-sf project doubles the capacity of PDX and enables the airport to welcome 35 million passengers per year by 2045.

Products and Materials

EPA issues $160 million in grants for clean manufacturing of steel, other construction materials

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency will provide 38 grant recipients with nearly $160 million to support efforts to report and reduce climate pollution from the manufacturing of construction materials and products.

Mass Timber

Oregon State University builds a first-of-its-kind mass timber research lab

In Corvallis, Oreg., the Jen-Hsun Huang and Lori Mills Huang Collaborative Innovation Complex at Oregon State University aims to achieve a distinction among the world’s experimental research labs: It will be the first all-mass-timber lab meeting rigorous vibration criteria (2000 micro-inches per second, or MIPS).

Most Popular Content