“Beautiful” and “traditional” are words just about every visitor to Kyoto uses to describe it. The city government is well aware, and proud, of that reputation, and in order to preserve those beautiful, traditional aesthetics, much of the city is covered by restrictions regarding what kinds of buildings can be built, and how big they can be.
This month, though, those restrictions were loosened in multiple parts of the city in a move likely to encourage the construction of more apartments, condominiums, and office buildings in Japan’s former capital.
The revised building code went into effect last Tuesday, and its most notable change is reducing the limits on building heights (i.e. allowing for taller buildings to be constructed), in certain parts of the city. In the area south of Kyoto Station, for example, buildings could not be taller than 20 or 25 meters, depending on their exact address. As of April 25, though, developers are allowed to build structures up to 31 meters tall. Also affected is the area around Saiin Station, on the west side of downtown, where the maximum allowed height for buildings has risen from 20 to 31 meters.
The change hasn’t been without detractors in online comments, but it highlights a complex issue. While Kyoto is widely considered a symbol of Japan’s traditional culture, it’s also a modern city with a population that needs places to live within reasonable distances from their jobs or schools. People in their 20s and 30s in particular are having trouble securing such homes, say the architects of the revised regulations, and the hope is that allowing for taller buildings, with more units available on the same plot of land, will help alleviate the affordable housing crunch.
▼ The view on the street a few blocks south of Kyoto Station
The tricky balancing act between preserving Kyoto’s atmosphere of tranquility while also keeping it a viable, ongoing community has also been illustrated in two other recently announced policy changes in the city: the abolishment of one-day all-you-can-ride tourist bus passes in order to address overcrowding, and the establishment of an empty home tax to encourage those not living full-time in their Kyoto homes to sell them off so others can move in.
In the short term, Kyoto’s relaxed building codes aren’t likely to spoil the city’s views and vibes in the eyes of tourists, since the affected areas tend to be outside the parts of town that tourists spend much time in. In the areas to the north and immediate west and east of Kyoto Station, where most of the city’s historical sites are located, building height restrictions will continue as they have been, so it’s not like a skyscraper is going to suddenly spring up and block your view of Kiyomizu Temple, the Imperial Palace, or the Gion cherry blossoms. Still, more people moving into the city’s outer areas is likely to eventually translate into more people spending their days in the city center, so if it’s a quiet, uncrowded Kyoto you want to experience, you’ll want to appreciate it while you can.
Source: NHK
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14 Comments
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japancat
That will spoil one of Japans best and most beautiful cities.
wallace
The Kyoto skyline just be preserved like in Paris.
falseflagsteve
Not too bothered about Kyoto these days, it’s lost it’s charm for me. Too busy now, ram packed with hoarders of tourists, rather unpleasant I must say.
tora
It's already not so beautiful. They ruined the during the period of high economic growth during the 70s-80s tore down entire rows of wooden houses, ripped out almost all the tram lines and focused on creating wide boulevards to cater for the motor car.
Clay
Translation? Money Talks and Architecture Walks!
Seawolf
I live in Karuizawa, once known for it's beautiful greenery (now mostly for its big Outlet shopping center). The former mayor who was finally ousted this year, encouraged the development of many 2-story condominium buildings, changing the forresty atmosphere and also the building of big hotels. One company is right now constructing 3 (!) hotels in different corners with the most cruel one right at the Ginza Shopping street, across the oldest surviving Ryokan, with the design of an ugly business hotel, maxed out spaces, hardly any parking for guests and of course no regards for the surroundings. I hope Kyoto doesn't slither down this path, it is like a Pandora's box, once opened it is difficult to control, bc concerend citizens are usually the last ones to know about ongoing projects and it becomes a huge task to stop anything. And that is even before thinking about how the high buildings might affect air circulation in summer which is already awful with the ongoing climate disaster.
rainyday
What balance? Outside of a few small areas on the periphery all of downtown Kyoto’s traditional atmosphere was bulldozed decades ago. The area south of the station is just as ugly and blighted as any other city’s is, keeping ugly modern buildings under a certain height limit never really did anything to stop that.
NAM
If they want to preserve the "charm" and esthetic beauty of Kyoto, first and foremost they need to start burying some of those powerlines! They are so much more of a constant blight on the skyline than any 10 meters of building would be, imho
ebisen
Yeah, Yakuza and the building Mafia reached it, finally. In Tokyo you see entire neighborhoods, with beautiful houses, parks and small shops, torn down to make space for one boring skyscraper. This is where Kyoto is going - in 50 years you'll have one skyscrapers looming over "buildings of touristic interest". Everything else will be torn down :( .
Mark
SAD news, Tall UGLY dark structures has no place in this beautiful historical city.
Moonraker
You can find some nooks and crannies here that evoke "Old Kyoto" - and I probably know more than most - and that seems to be enough for many. Otherwise, most of it is indistinguishable from generic Japanese city.
Moonraker
Actually, the fact is, in the areas where taller structures will be permitted, there is very little of interest anyway. And that applies to the greater part of the central part of the city. I remembered arriving at Kyoto Station 37 years ago - the old station - and thinking I must be in the wrong place or the station was way out on the edge of town. But it is not. The stuff to see is mainly on the edge of town.