TOKYO HIGH-RISE ARCHITECTURE
A hobby blog touring Tokyo's major office towers and high-rise residences one by one — mostly in Minato, Chiyoda and Chuo wards. Completion years, heights and the background of each development, recorded from public sources.
The buildings we covered most recently — completion year, height and the story behind each development.
A 798-metre suspension bridge completed in August 1993, linking Shibaura and Odaiba across Tokyo Bay. Twin towers rise 126 metres above sea level, while the double-deck structure carries the Shuto Expressway, Yurikamome monorail, a coastal road, and a public promenade in a single span.
A 48-storey, 225-metre skyscraper completed in January 2023 in the heart of Kabukicho, Shinjuku. Containing a live music hall, theatre, cinema and two hotels but no office floors, it translates the entertainment character of the district into a vertical tower.
A 246-metre steel road bridge completed in 1940 on the Sumida River. Its central span is Japan's only Chicago-style double-leaf bascule bridge, last opened in 1970. Designated an Important Cultural Property in 2007.
A stone double-arch bridge completed in 1911, carrying the Nihon Kokudo Rodo Hyoshiki — the national road origin marker — at its centre. Designated an Important Cultural Property in 1999. The expressway overhead is currently being put underground, with completion expected in the 2040s.
Completed in 2012 at 634 m, Tokyo Skytree is the world's tallest self-supporting broadcasting tower and transformed the old shitamachi neighbourhood of Oshiage into a global landmark.
A self-supporting steel broadcasting tower completed in 1958. Standing 333 m tall, it surpassed the Eiffel Tower and symbolised Japan's postwar recovery — and still defines Tokyo's skyline.
A pair of 52-story towers completed in September 2015, rising 177.3 metres above the Harumi waterfront. Developed by Sumitomo Realty and built by Sumitomo Mitsui Construction, the matched towers anchor the skyline of the Kachidoki–Harumi bay district.
A 40-story, approximately 141-meter residential tower completed in May 2015 as part of the large-scale Kitashinagawa 5-chome urban redevelopment. The tower stands alongside office and retail buildings to form a mixed-use precinct steps from Osaki Station.
Twin supertall condominiums completed in 2004–2005 on the former Mitsubishi Steel plant grounds in Shinonome. The EAST Tower rises 54 floors and approximately 178 meters, marking the beginning of the district's high-rise era.
A 49-story, 189-metre supertall tower steps from Ikebukuro Station, where Toshima City Hall and 432 private condominiums share a single building — Japan's first civic-office-plus-residence integrated high-rise, completed in 2015.