The Torch Tower hopes to be a bright and energetic new symbol for the city.

Tokyo’s city center is surprisingly compact (you can walk from one side of it to the other in an hour and a half), and also incredibly dense. That combination means there’s very little in the way of available empty space, so when downtown Tokyo grows, it grows upwards, and an announcement this week revealed that it’s going to reach a height it never has before.

Property developer Mitsubishi estate has unveiled its plans for a skyscraper to be called the Torch Tower. Located across the street from Tokyo Station, the finished structure will be 390 meters (1,280 feet) tall, making it the tallest building in Japan, and 90 meters taller than the current record holder, Osaka’s Abeno Harukas.

While it won’t be the highest man-made thing in Japan (that honor still goes to the Tokyo Skytree), the solid-building Torch Tower will still be taller than Tokyo Tower by 57 meters (or 3.2 life-size Gundams, if you have an easier time visualizing distances in anime robot units).

As for what’ll be inside the Torch Tower, the basement and first six above-ground floors will have shops, restaurants, and concert/event halls, with a two-kilometer (1.2-mile) outdoor walkway winding its way up the structure and through ample open-air spaces and a garden terrace.


From there, there’s a large block of office space until you get to floors 57-61, which will house a luxury hotel with a lobby and guestrooms offering sweeping views of the city.

But for the most dazzling vistas, you’ll want to head to the rooftop observation platform, which will allow you to see out over Tokyo Bay and, looking inland, all the way to Mt. Fuji.

A project of this scale is no quick and simple construction job, and the Torch Tower isn’t expected to open until 2027. When it does, though, it’ll be a sight to see, and also an amazing place to see Tokyo’s other sights from.

Source: Mitsubishi Estate via Livedoor News/Nitele News 24 via Otakomu
Images: Mitsubishi Estate
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