Roppongi Hills

Roppongi Hills
Roppongi Hills as seen from Tokyo Tower
General information
Location	Minato, Tokyo, Japan
Construction started	2000
Completed	2003
Opening	April 23, 2003
Owner	Mori Building
Height
Roof	238 m (781 ft)
Technical details
Floor count	54
Floor area	724,000 m2 (7,790,000 sq ft)
Design and construction
Architect(s)	Kohn Pedersen Fox was the Design Architect of the building, The Jerde Partnership was the Associate Architect for the Building

Roppongi Hills (六本木ヒルズ, Roppongi Hiruzu) is a New Urban Centre and one of Japan's largest integrated property developments, located in the Roppongi district of Minato, Tokyo.

Constructed by building tycoon Minoru Mori, the mega-complex incorporates office space, apartments, shops, restaurants, cafés, movie theaters, a museum, a hotel, a major TV studio, an outdoor amphitheater, and a few parks. The centerpiece is the 54-story Mori Tower. Mori's stated vision was to build an integrated development where high-rise inner-urban communities allow people to live, work, play, and shop in proximity to eliminate commuting time. He argued that this would increase leisure time, quality of life, and benefit Japan's national competitiveness. Seventeen years after the design's initial conception, the complex opened to the public on April 23, 2003.

The development

Roppongi Hills cost over $4 billion and is built on a 27 acre (109,000 m²) site. The site amalgamated more than 400 smaller lots Mori acquired over 14 years.

Mori Tower

Mori Tower

Mori Tower is a 54-story high-rise building designed by Kohn Pedersen Fox that houses an art museum, restaurants, cafes, clinics, stores, the offices of Barclays Capital, Ferrari Japan, Goldman Sachs, J-WAVE, Konami, salesforce.com, Time Inc., Chevron, Allen & Overy, BASF, Lenovo, Baidu, GREE, BP, SAS Institute and Google. The Pokémon Company has its headquarters in the Mori Tower.

The first six levels of Mori Tower contain retail stores and restaurants. The top six floors house the Mori Art Museum and the Tokyo City View with panoramic views of the city. A new exit from Roppongi Station empties into a glass atrium filled with large television screens and escalators, as well as several shops and restaurants. The rest of the building is office space.

Other buildings

Roppongi Hills Residence

Around the Mori Tower are several smaller buildings predominantly occupied by shops and restaurants, a cinema complex, and the Mori Garden. Behind the Mori Tower lies the Roppongi Keyakizaka Street which has cafes and luxury stores such as Louis Vuitton. Nearby are the four Roppongi Hills Residences towers, with a total of 793 luxurious and very expensive residential apartments.

Large open spaces have been built into the design of Roppongi Hills. About half of the area consists of gardens, pavilions, and other open spaces. The Mohri Garden, an elaborate and authentic Japanese garden complete with a pond and trees is particularly popular. The Mohri Garden is a part of a lost mansion that housed members of the feudal Mohri clan.

On Roppongi Hills the exhibition of the United Buddy Bears was shown in 2005 for the first time in Japan. The exhibition was opened by the President of the Federal Republic of Germany, Horst Köhler, together with the Prime Minister of Japan, Junichiro Koizumi. According to the Mori-Group, project partners in Tokyo, they were able to count 3 million visitors over the 6 weeks of the exhibition.

The American School in Japan's Early Learning Center is housed in a residence building next to the Hills.

Revolving door fatality

The first year of operations was marred when a six-year-old boy, Ryo Mizokawa, was killed on March 26, 2004 after his head was crushed by revolving doors at the second-floor entrance to Mori Tower in the Roppongi Hills complex. He had been visiting the complex with his mother from Osaka. It was discovered that the sensors were placed too high, and therefore, the boy was not "visible" to the safety system.

As a result of the accident, Mori Building Co., the operator of the building, agreed to pay the boy's family around 70 million yen ($715,330) in compensation and to undertake safety precautions to prevent similar incidents in the future. The automatic revolving doors were removed and replaced with automatic sliding doors.

Unknown to the authorities, the accident was preceded by 32 injuries related to the doors. An investigation by the Tokyo Metropolitan Police into professional negligence by Mori Building Co. and the door's manufacturer, Sanwa Tajima Corp. resulted in the conviction of three former executives for professional negligence.

Criticism and conflict in Roppongi Hills

Roppongi Hills Arena is a facility with large outdoor speakers, in proximity to older housing. Since the construction of the Roppongi Hills development, complaints of noise pollution from older residents have been ignored by Mori Building management, according to residents. The building most directly suffering from noise is on top of an embankment opposite the Arena. Residents claim several residents have been forced out by the noise.

Commentator Henry Hilton of the Japan Today news website criticized the development when he argued:

"Yet the truth is that the crowds are unlikely to return once they have been exhausted by the charade of inconvenient walkways that appear almost intentionally to confuse all but those with perfect map navigational skills. The whole maze is far from being user friendly—don't count on full protection from autumn showers or sudden gusts of wind generated by the buildings themselves."

Financial issues

Roppongi Hills

Mori Building has financed the project with $800 million equity and $1.3 billion in debt from a syndicate of banks led by the Development Bank of Japan. As a result, the company's overall debts are $5.6 billion, secured by billions more in assets.

Goldman Sachs & Co., the project's anchor tenant, attracted deep discounts in rental prices because of the large amount of space it occupies. Japan's sluggish economy, staff cuts by foreign companies, and the flow of new office space have put downward pressure on rents.

Because of conservative eminent domain law in Japan, several past residents of the site that would be Roppongi Hills have been given residential units in the complex in return for their agreement to vacate their prior homes, so that their prior homes would be demolished and the land use for the development of Roppongi Hills.

Competition

The Tokyo Midtown, which is Tokyo's latest mixed-use development project, is built less than a kilometer from the borders of Roppongi Hills. As it will incorporate Tokyo's tallest building, a sizable park, and a museum, in addition to a complex of residential and offices, it was expected that this project would increase the competition for customers upon the opening. However, as of January 2008, the Tokyo commercial real estate market is still suffering from insufficient capacity and occupancy rates throughout the city are at record highs.

Floor Directories

North Tower

N2F (2nd floor)	N1F (1st floor)	NB1F (Basement floor)
51 BANANA REPUBLIC	6 Hanabatakebokujo Cafe 27 TULLY'S COFFEE 31 Cold Stone Creamery 67 Lapis	5 Butz 14 Capricciosa 23 GENJI SUSHI NEW YORK 28 Tetsugama 32 Sugamo Konaya 39 Temomin 41 CALL CUISINE 44 katsumaru 45 Laundry Ogura 48 Sakura shokudou 51 FamilyMart 54 OmtRak pit 58 JIRAIYA 64 eashion by K-STAGE 65a Cave Asian kitchen

Metro Hat/Hollywood Plaza

M/H3F (3rd floor)	M/H2F (2nd floor)	M/H1F (1st floor)	M/HB1F (Basement floor)	M/HB2F (2nd Basement floor)
59 MAY'S BRIDAL SALON 61 MAY'S GARDEN SPA produced by Hollywood Beauty Salon	54 DIESEL 78 HYSTERIC GLAMOUR	22 MOTOYAMA MILK BAR 32 SABON 46 adidas Originals Shop 66 REPLAY STORE 71 earth music&ecology Super premium store	12 STARBUCKS COFFEE 15 METRO HAT GENERAL INFORMATION 16 Te 19 The Pantry 30 Pepe Jeans LONDON 37 JENNIFER BEAUTYSHOP 47 THE SOUTHWEST CONNECTION 49 SHINSEI BANK ATM / SEVEN BANK ATM 52 adidas PERFORMANCE CENTRE 55 TaylorMade-adidas Golf	1 BAR de ESPAÑA TAPEO 6 Pintokona 7 66 DINING 10 Katsukobowako 14 SoupStockTokyo 16 BAGEL & BAGEL 17 Roppongi Momodori 33 Tokyo Sundub 34 RINYA 45 phiten 48 TOTAL Workout Cafe TOTAL Workout 49 TOTAL BODY CARE

West Walk

W6F (6th floor)	W5F (5th floor)	W4F (4th floor)	W3F (3rd floor)	W2F (2nd floor)	W1F (1st floor)
3 JENNIFER HAIR & BEAUTY INTERNATIONAL 23 Koritoreru & Foot Love 26 MISTER MINIT 27 HILLS TWENTY-ONE 32 MONEY EXCHANGE WORLD CURRENC¥ $HOP 39 H.I.S. 42 55 Station 45 JAPAN POST BANK ATM 48 Segafredo ZANETTI Espresso 53 SHINSEI BANK ATM 55 SHINSEI BANK 77 MIZUHO BANK / MIZUHO BANK ATM 81 Community Passport Customer Center 97 ROPPONGI HILLS POST OFFICE 121 Kid's Square Medical Area 1 Roppongi Hills Clinic (MEDICAL CENTER) 99 Roppongi Hills Nishibori Dental Office 107 K-RIVER Pharmacy 125 Roppongi Hills Clinic (DEPT. OF HEALTH PROMOTION)	3 Izakaya Rokuzo 21 Shinjuku Nakamuraya Indian curry restaurant 23 kushinobo 25 The Kitchen Salvatore Cuomo 51 AZABU KYUTOKU 77 sushi SEIZAN 84 kasumi-cho soba masudaya 85 Lao Hu Dong Yi Ju 91 TEPPAN Hidalgo 95 yasaiya Mei 103 RIGOLETTO BAR AND GRILL 151 Roppongi J (Roy's Tokyo Bar&Grill) 195 Roppongi J (Bamboo Bar/Xen) GRAND HYATT TOKYO (GH-6F) 27 Chinaroom 29 The Oak Door The Oak Door Bar 197 Shunbou 199 Roku Roku	5 DeLi 8 TROIKA DESIGN STORE 19 Alta Classe CAPRI GUANTI 20 CHIDORIYA 24 L.E.D. BITES 34 HANWAY 35 Lava keskus 42 CLASSICS the Small Luxury 48 Paper Mint 51 L'EQUIPE YOSHIE INABA 77 TOUCH 84 Espresso Americano 89 NAIL STATION VERY+PLUXY 93 Charisseijo 112 RESIDENTS by Archimedes Spiral 125 AOYAMA BOOK CENTER 138 LAWSON 163 BOSE SELECT SHOP 170 BIRKENSTOCK 172 Well Being by Aroma Bloom 177 Iwaki 180 TREE OF LIFE HANDMADE GUILD 183 Onitsuka Tiger 189 Calzalone by Fukuske 193 RAWLIFE GRAND HYATT TOKYO (GH-4F) 27 KEYAKIZAKA 195 Maduro	1 BALS TOKYO ROPPONGI by AGITO 3 LAZY SUSAN 8 Odette é Odile UNITED ARROWS 11 Tiara 19 ete bijoux 22 héliopoôle 30 NIWAKA 33 VERITAS 44 yoshinob 45 STAR JEWELRY + WORKSHOP 49 PLATINUM SWC 53 ZARA 57 espressamente illy 163 ROPPONGI HILLS ART & DESIGN STORE 197 deuxcotes DESIGNWORKS	1 UNITED ARROWS ROPPONGI MEN'S STORE 7 CONCENTO PARIS H.P.FRANCE 9 Armani Jeans 14 PLS+T GALLERY 15 SAMANTHA THAVASA NEW YORK 18 SALOTTO 19 TIFFANY & CO. THE MEN'S STORE 22 ADORE 23 Jewel Changes United Arrows 27 SPICK & SPAN NOBLE 28 ANTEPRIMA/WIREBAG 34 Ponte Vecchio 36 FURLA 37 CITRUS NOTES 43 Flavor Dresser 45 kakimoto arms 54 STARBUCKS COFFEE 67 ZARA	26 ROPPONGI SUZUSAKE 34 Tomod's 90 HEARTLAND 101 STARBUCKS COFFEE GRAND HYATT TOKYO (GH-1-3F) GH-1F Fiorentina Fiorentina Pastry Boutique Lobby Shop (Cigar club) GH-2F The French Kitchen The French Kitchen Bar GH-3F SASHU SALON Armonia Studio S

Hillside

H2F (2nd floor)	H1F (1st floor)	HB1F (Basement floor)	HB2F (2nd Basement floor)
5 Bouquet o! Bouquet 23 atelier haruka 24 Hills Café/Space 31 Michal Negrin 57 Hong Kong Tea House Restaurant 121 ESTNATION 132 La Boutique de Joël Robuchon Restaurant in TOHO Cinemas Roppongi Hills H3F CURTAIN CALL	9 MAMEKIN 12 The Nanxiang Steamed Bun Restaurant 17 Ten Ippo 27 Bairan 55 TOKYO TAIYAKI NOV. DUE TO OPEN 82 kinoshohampu 93 KAPITAL 110 HARBS 116 ZERO HALLIBURTON 124 ESTNATION	117 Oriental Princess 19 DIYA INDIAN RESTAURANT 33 Bali Café PUTRI 59 VIVIENNE TAM 62 minoes mignonne 78 Balcony 79 BALS TOKYO SPICE 84 HELEN KAMINSKI 97 ANNA SUI 112 Sov. DOUBLE STANDARD CLOTHING 116 LULU GUINNESS 128 Language 130 kashwére at home 134 Terres de Truffes,Tokyo 140 kate spade NEW YORK 150 OBIKÀ MOZZARELLA BAR	22 TORA 27 ARATA 51 Mohri Salvatore Cuomo 63 WIRED CAFE Dining Lounge 87 tv asahi shop 89 CHEZ MADU 90 musée imaginaire 122 Stomp Stamp 128 BorneLund 142 Ribbon hakka kids Café R Cafe in Roppongi Hills Arena HS-B2F ARENA CAFÉ

Roppongi Keyakizaka Dori

K3F (3rd floor)	K2F (2nd floor)	K1F (1st floor)
7 Ristorante Italiano L'ESTASI 185 WINE SHOP ENOTECA 191 KEYAKIZAKA BAKERY NOV. DUE TO OPEN 227 MASSATO PARIS 233 FAMILY LI IMPERIAL CUISINE 237 Tenpura Mikawa 239 L'esprit MITANI 247 Roppongi Takeyabu 257 DOGS CARE JOKER 259 sushi sukiyabashi Jiro 261 Kiton	3 FOO:D magazine 5 TSUTAYA TOKYO ROPPONGI 97 Il Mulino New York Il Mulino New York Lounge Comfy 141 LANCEL 143 & 310 MaxMara 324 DIANE von FURSTENBERG 326 Nail Deux Prier	3 FOO:D magazine 5 TSUTAYA TOKYO ROPPONGI 9 STARBUCKS COFFEE 45 GIORGIO ARMANI 84 BABBI 98 KENMA X JOTARO SAITO 112 LUIGI BORRELLI 125 LE CHOCOLAT DE H 126 LA PERLA 135 BoConcept 141 LANCEL 155 LOUIS VUITTON 156 tv asahi umu 195 MINI Roppongi 229 Loro Piana 243 Scandinavian Design House 257 TORAYA CAFÉ 259 SHINSEI BANK ATM 265 Kiton 280 Felisii 283 Christofle Boutique Roppongi 289 Baccarat Shop Roppongi B bar Roppongi 293 Tiffany & Co. 310 MaxMara 321 ESCADA Boutique 324 DIANE von FURSTENBERG 351 Lauderdale NOV. DUE TO OPEN 357 HIROFU 397 HUGO BOSS 399 Trek Store Roppongi

See also

• Omotesando Hills, a similar (but smaller) development also built by Mori
• List of skyscrapers

Jerde-associated architectural projects in Japan:

• Canal City Hakata (Fukuoka)
• Namba Parks (Osaka)
• Riverwalk Kitakyushu
• Roppongi Hills (Tokyo)

External links

• Official Roppongi Hills website
• Controversy rages about Roppongi Hills
• Emporis
• Roppongi Hills Map
• Template:En icon Virtual Tour of Roppongi Hills
• Matsutani, Minoru, "Roppongi Hills: As status symbol, it tops the rest, Roppongi Hills an allure for the trendy, the scandalous, and those curious about both", Japan Times, November 10, 2009, p. 3.