A Tokyo building will be demolished for blocking the view of Mt. Fuji
A newly constructed tower block in downtown Tokyo is set to be demolished a month before apartments are offered to buyers, after angry locals complained that the building blocked their views of Mt. Fuji.
The 10-story building on Fujimi Street – which translates as ‘Fuji view’ – in the Kunitachi suburb has 18 apartments, ranging in price from ¥70 million to ¥100 million ($445,000 to $636,000), according to . to the builder Sekisui House Ltd.
The company issued an apology on Tuesday saying the building has a “significant impact” on the area.
“We concluded that the view from Fujimi Street should come first. We have voluntarily decided to cancel this project,” it said in a statement on its website.
The company will reimburse buyers and help arrange for alternative housing if necessary, a spokesperson told Bloomberg News. Any financial losses on the soon-to-be-demolished building were not disclosed.
積水ハッス様 @SekisuiHouse_
国国駅にますますた富士見通りの #富士山 がなんますないですしたたますたたたたたたたたたたたたたたた pic.twitter.com/WleLNFRoh— 竹内幹 (@takekan) December 19, 2023
The view of Mt. Fuji, a Unesco World Heritage Site, is a real estate destination in Japan. ‘Fujimi’ is a general term that can be used to label anything from streets to residential buildings to entire cities, often to promote a local vision. Kunitachi was selected in the government’s guide to the top 100 Fuji viewing spots in the region.
The building blocked the view of the mountain from the local train station, according to a post on X by Kan Takeuchi, an associate professor at Hitotsubashi University, which has a campus in Kunitachi.
Although the view of the iconic mountain is very important to the Japanese people, the right of tourists to see it has recently become a matter of debate. The nation is facing a tourism crisis due to the weak yen and the desire to travel after the pandemic and locals have complained that tourists are causing a disturbance at the famous viewpoints of Mt. Fuji.
In May, local authorities in the resort town of Fujikawaguchiko placed an opaque barrier on a remote shop with a backdrop of Mt. Fuji. The site was flooded with photo-hungry visitors looking for the perfect Instagram photo. A second barrier has also recently been installed at an overpass that has the same scenic view of Fuji City.
Sekisui House has not released future plans for the Kunitachi site.
