Nagoya JR Central Towers

Twin supertall towers completed in 1999 directly above JR Nagoya Station. The Office Tower reaches 245.1 m across 51 floors and the Hotel Tower 226.0 m across 53 floors, making this Japan's first station-integrated skyscraper and the catalyst for Nagoya's high-rise district.

Use

Office tower

Area

Nagoya, Nakamura Ward

Completed

1999

Floors

53 above ground, 4 below

Height

245.1 m

Developer

Central Japan Railway Company (JR Tokai)

Architect

Kohn Pedersen Fox (KPF); Taisei Corporation / Sakakura Associates / JR Tokai Design Joint Venture

Twin Towers Above Nagoya Station

Step off a shinkansen at JR Nagoya Station and two towers rise directly overhead: the Nagoya JR Central Towers. Completed on 20 December 1999, this complex was developed by Central Japan Railway (JR Tokai) as Japan’s first station-integrated supertall. The Office Tower stands 245.1 metres with 51 above-ground floors, while the Hotel Tower reaches 226.0 metres with 53 floors. New York firm Kohn Pedersen Fox (KPF) served as design consultant, working with a Japanese joint venture of Taisei Corporation, Sakakura Associates and JR Tokai on the technical design. Eleven construction firms formed a joint venture and the project took roughly five and a half years after breaking ground in August 1994.

The Hotel Tower’s upper floors are occupied by the Nagoya Marriott Associa Hotel. The Office Tower houses JR subsidiaries and domestic and international tenants. At street level, a retail zone connects directly to the station concourse and merges with the adjacent JR Gate Tower, forming one of Japan’s most heavily trafficked indoor shopping corridors.

The Starting Point of Nagoya’s Skyline

Before the Central Towers opened, no supertall stood in Nagoya’s station district. Building two towers directly above an operating shinkansen platform demanded advanced structural engineering to absorb vibration and distribute enormous loads — a technical achievement that became the reference point for later station-top skyscrapers in Japan. The project’s success spurred investment along the station’s east side: Midland Square arrived in 2006 at 247 m, and JR Gate Tower followed in 2017, completing one of Japan’s most concentrated high-rise clusters outside Tokyo.

Summary

Completed in 1999, the Nagoya JR Central Towers pair an Office Tower at 245.1 m with a Hotel Tower at 226.0 m, both rising directly above JR Nagoya Station. Japan’s first station-integrated supertall, the complex set the engineering template for the type and sparked the transformation of Meieki into a high-rise district. When passing through Nagoya, look up as you exit the ticket gates — the towers are, quite literally, part of the station.

Related: Midland Square · JR Gate Tower · Nagoya Lucent Tower