Sited on two parcels formerly occupied by the Tokyo Department Store in the Nihonbashi district, Nihonbashi 1-Chome is adjacent to several historic sites in the city.
The design solution proposes a structure that connects to the surrounding low scale buildings as it rises substantially above. The main program of this 20-story mixed-use development is commercial office space, which has been designed to meet the requirements of international financial institutions. All of the vertical service elements have been placed along the north side of the site to accommodate the large depth desired for this type of office space within the confines of a relatively narrow site.
The core and the office volume are expressed as distinct elements and are clad in stone and glass respectively. The introduction of natural light into the office areas is carefully modulated by louvered shading devices. A clear space from core to wall structures the office volume and provides the opportunity for internal circulation along the glass, providing a sense of weightless suspension to the curving south wall.
Below the office space is a five-story glass volume at the corner of Chuodori and Etai-dori. Extruded from the mass of the tower, it houses the retail space and is clad in an enclosure composed of closely spaced vertical glass fins projecting from a clear glass wall. Rising at a height of thirty meters, it establishes an urban connection with its neighbors.
