Does downtown Tokyo’s transformation offer clues to Jongmyo development dispute?

An aerial view of Sewoon District, an area around Jongmyo Shrine in Jung District, central Seoul [KIM SEONG-RYONG]

An aerial view of the Marunouchi area near the Imperial Palace in Tokyo, Japan is seen in this file photo [JOONGANG ILBO]

 
TOKYO — While Tokyo accelerates high-rise redevelopment even around imperial landmarks through coordinated planning, Seoul’s decades-stalled plan to redevelop the Sewoon district near Jongmyo Shrine shows how unresolved disputes over heritage have left a prime area frozen in decline.
 
On Nov. 14, in the heart of Tokyo near the Imperial Palace, a massive crane towered into the sky between long lines of tourists hoping to glimpse the emperor’s residence. It marked the redevelopment site of the Tokyo Marine Building.
 
 
Situated between the Imperial Palace and Tokyo Station — the latter a nationally designated cultural property — the building was the first to define Marunouchi, the district known as “Tokyo’s Wall Street,” with its now-iconic skyline.
 
The site lies approximately 300 meters (984 feet) from the Kikyo Gate, the main entrance to the palace, and just across a road from the Edo Castle moat, a Special Historic Site under Japanese law.  
 
The new structure will rise to 110.9 meters, replacing the former 100-meter building, with 20 aboveground floors and three basement levels. It is scheduled for completion in August 2028.
 
And this is just one example. The Marunouchi area, home to 145 listed companies, is experiencing a wave of high-rise redevelopment.
 
Nine large-scale construction projects are currently underway in the Otemachi-Marunouchi-Yurakucho area near the palace and around Tokyo Station. To the east of the station, 37 buildings are being demolished to make way for a 223-meter mixed-use tower with 28 aboveground floors and four basement levels. The building, due to be completed in 2029, will include retail facilities, a bus terminal and a performance venue.
 

An aerial view of the Marunouchi area near the Imperial Palace in Tokyo, Japan in 1996. [JOONGANG ILBO]

 
To the west of the station, construction is in full swing on Torch Tower, which will become Japan’s tallest building at 385 meters and 62 stories when completed in 2028.
 
This building boom was accelerated by former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who served two terms in the 2000s and promoted deregulation as part of national strategic special zones to stimulate the economy. A “mortar-shaped skyline” has since emerged, with buildings near the palace capped at 100 meters and those farther away rising to 200 meters.
 
This zoning concept was developed by a public-private committee comprising the Tokyo Metropolitan Government, Chiyoda Ward, JR East and the Otemachi-Marunouchi-Yurakucho District Development Council.
 
“Torch Tower exceeds the 200-meter guideline, but the regulations allow exceptions if the structure contributes symbolic value to the city,” said Akihiko Osawa, associate professor of architecture at Toyo University. “Given its distance and location on the opposite side of the palace, its impact on the skyline was deemed minimal.”
 
Development in Marunouchi hasn’t been without controversy. In the early 1960s, ahead of the 1964 Tokyo Olympics, redevelopment needs were raised. When Tokyo Marine first proposed rebuilding its 1918 structure, then Prime Minister Eisaku Sato objected, saying it was disrespectful to build a tower that would overlook the palace. The original 128-meter plan was ultimately scaled down to 100 meters.
 

Skyscrapers and high-rise redevelopment sites are seen on a street in the Marunouchi area near the Imperial Palace in Tokyo, Japan on Nov. 21. [KIM HYUN-YE]

 
Kyoto, a city dense with Unesco World Heritage sites, has seen similar disputes. Near Ninna-ji, a temple inscribed on the World Heritage list in 1994, a luxury hotel with a total floor area of 5,900 square meters and three aboveground floors is preparing to open.
 
The site had been zoned as a Category 1 residential area, where hotels larger than 3,000 square meters were prohibited. But in response to rising numbers of foreign tourists, Kyoto City applied a special exemption for the first time in 2023, approving the hotel under the condition that “it must harmonize with the aesthetics of Ninna-ji.”
 
Yoshifumi Muneta, professor and dean of the School of International Communication at Kansai International University, said the hotel was only allowed after 17 years of dialogue through a community-driven “landscape review” process and the creation of a local development council in 2008.
 
In contrast, redevelopment of the Sewoon District in front of Jongmyo Shrine in central Seoul has stalled for over two decades.
 
As of Friday, much of the Sewoon District remained in decay, with large sections resembling the shantytowns of the 1960s and 1970s, despite its prime location in a designated commercial zone. Of the 39 designated redevelopment blocks, most remain blighted, with only a handful showing any sign of progress.
 

A street in Sewoon District, an area around Jongmyo Shrine in Jung District, central Seoul, is seen on Nov. 23. [KIM JONG-HO]

 
Block 4, a 32,222-square-meter (7.9 acres) area directly across from the shrine, is a barren field. Since 2004, redevelopment efforts have included demolishing low-rise buildings and installing perimeter fencing, but construction has yet to begin. Over 20 years, the Seoul Housing & Communities Corporation (SH) has spent 725 billion won ($492 million) on land compensation and relocation expenses for tenants.
 
Of the original 350 or so landowners, most have either passed away or taken cash settlements. Fewer than 140 remain today.
 
“Don’t people have to live here for Jongmyo to be preserved?” said Kim Jong-gil, head of the residents’ association for Block 4. “Nobody cares about the lives of the people.”
 
The blame lies partly with inconsistent city policy. The maximum building height for the Sewoon District has shifted with every change in mayoral leadership. Under Mayor and later President Lee Myung-bak in 2004, the cap for Block 4 was set at 90 meters. It was raised to 122 meters under Mayor Oh Se-hoon, cut to 71.8 meters under Mayor Park Won-soon, and then increased again to 141.9 meters under a returned Oh, reigniting what is now dubbed the “Jongmyo Height War.”
 

An aerial view of Sewoon District, an area around Jongmyo Shrine in Jung District, central Seoul, is seen on Nov. 24. [KIM SEONG-RYONG]

 
Debate also persists over whether to demolish Sewoon Shopping Center, designed by master architect Kim Swoo-geun, or preserve it. Some argue for its conservation and revitalization, while others advocate for removing the structure to create a green corridor connecting east and west.
 
Experts say a shift from political wrangling to social consensus is urgently needed.
 
“Mayor Park tried to revitalize the Sewoon area through preservation, but the project ultimately failed,” said Baek Jin, professor of architecture at Seoul National University. “If we remove the building and create a greenbelt, it could offer a new opportunity to rejuvenate the old downtown. But rather than relying solely on private incentives, the central government must also step in to support discussions, possibly including scaling down building heights.”
 
Osawa, the Japanese architecture professor, added, “Around World Heritage sites, the environment and skyline must be discussed collaboratively by citizens, landowners, experts and authorities, with a shared vision.”

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY HAN EUN-HWA,KANG HYE-RAN,KIM HYUN-YE [[email protected]]