The , also referred to as the for short, is the seat of the

Tokyo Metropolitan Government The is the government of the Tokyo Metropolis. One of the 56 prefectures of Japan, the government consists of a popularly elected governor and assembly. The headquarters building is located in the ward of Shinjuku. The metropolitan government ...

, which governs the

special wards are a special form of municipalities in Japan under the 1947 Local Autonomy Law. They are city-level wards: primary subdivisions of a prefecture with municipal autonomy largely comparable to other forms of municipalities. Although the autono ...

, cities, towns, and villages that constitute the

Tokyo Metropolis Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and List of cities in Japan, largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, ...

. Located in

Shinjuku is a special ward in Tokyo, Japan. It is a major commercial and administrative centre, housing the northern half of the busiest railway station in the world (Shinjuku Station) and the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building, the administration ...

ward, the building was designed by architect

Kenzo Tange is a common masculine Japanese given name. Possible writings Kenzō can be written using different kanji characters and can mean: *賢三, "wise, three" *健三, "healthy, three" *謙三, "humble, three" *健想, "healthy, concept" *建造, "bu ...

. It consists of a complex of three structures, each taking up a city block. The tallest of the three is Tokyo Metropolitan Main building No.1, a tower 48 stories tall that splits into two sections at the 33rd floor. The building also has three levels below ground. The design of the building was meant to resemble an

integrated circuit An integrated circuit or monolithic integrated circuit (also referred to as an IC, a chip, or a microchip) is a set of electronic circuits on one small flat piece (or "chip") of semiconductor material, usually silicon. Large numbers of tiny ...

, while also evoking the look of a

Gothic Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths **Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...

cathedral A cathedral is a church that contains the '' cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denomination ...

. It is the tallest city hall in the world. The other two buildings in the complex are the eight-story

Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly The is the prefectural parliament of Tokyo Metropolis. Its 127 members are elected every four years in 42 districts by single non-transferable vote. 23 electoral districts equal the special wards, another 18 districts are made up by the cities, ...

Building (including one underground floor) and Tokyo Metropolitan Main Building No. 2, which has 37 stories including three below ground. The two panoramic

observation deck An observation deck, observation platform, or viewing platform is an elevated sightseeing platform usually situated upon a tall architectural structure, such as a skyscraper or observation tower. Observation decks are sometimes enclosed ...

s, one in each tower on floor 45 ( high), are free of charge to the public and contain

gift shops A gift shop or souvenir shop is a store primarily selling souvenirs, memorabilia, and other items relating to a particular topic or theme. The items sold often include coffee mugs, stuffed animals, toys, t-shirts, postcards, handmade collec ...

and

cafe A coffeehouse, coffee shop, or café is an establishment that primarily serves coffee of various types, notably espresso, latte, and cappuccino. Some coffeehouses may serve cold drinks, such as iced coffee and iced tea, as well as other non-caf ...

s. The observation decks are open between 9:30 and 23:00, but the two observation decks are open on alternate days.

History

The building was designed by

and finished in December 1990 at the expense of ¥157 billion (about

US$ The United States dollar (symbol: $; code: USD; also abbreviated US$ or U.S. Dollar, to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies; referred to as the dollar, U.S. dollar, American dollar, or colloquially buck) is the official ...

1 billion) of public money. It replaced the old city hall at

Yūrakuchō is a business district of Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan, situated in between the Ginza and Hibiya Park, southeast of the Tokyo Imperial Palace. The district takes its name from Oda Nagamasu (1547–1622), who was also known as Yūraku (有楽). Oda Naga ...

, which was built in 1957 and also designed by Tange, which is now the site of the

Tokyo International Forum The is a multi-purpose exhibition center in Tokyo, Japan. The complex is generally considered to be in the Yūrakuchō business district, being adjacent to Yūrakuchō Station, but it is administratively in the Marunouchi district. Tokyo Int ...

. It was the tallest building by roof height in Tokyo, at , until the

Midtown Tower is a mixed-use skyscraper in Akasaka, Tokyo, Akasaka, Minato, Tokyo. Completed in 2007, it is the tallest of the six buildings within the Tokyo Midtown complex, at , and was the List of tallest buildings and structures in Tokyo, tallest office ...

was completed in 2007. TokyoMetropolitanGovernmentOffice.jpg, ''Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building No. 1'' (''Tōkyō-tochō daiichi honchōsha'') Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building No.2 2009.jpg, ''Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building No. 2'' (''Tōkyō-tochō daini honchōsha'') Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building circa 1960.jpg, The previous ''Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building'' 1957–1991 in Chiyoda district Tokyo Prefectural Office and Tokyo City Hall 1930s.jpg, The first ''Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building'', in 1930s ''Tokyo Prefectural Government Building'' and of ''Tokyo City Hall'', was damaged in WW2.

References

External links

*
Map showing the buildings and its neighborhood

Guide to the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building Tour
(in Japanese)

3D model of the building for use in Google Earth

Tokyo Metropolitan Government Complex

Wheelchair Accessibility Information
, - {{Authority control 1990 establishments in Japan City and town halls in Japan Government buildings completed in 1990 Government of Tokyo Kenzo Tange buildings Modernist architecture in Japan Postmodern architecture in Japan Skyscraper office buildings in Tokyo Skyscrapers in Shinjuku

History

See also

References

External links