Waterras

A mixed-use complex completed in 2013 anchored by Waterras Tower, a 41-story, approximately 164-meter high-rise in Kanda-Awajicho. Developed through a first-category urban redevelopment project, it stacks housing, offices, retail, and industry-academia facilities to sustain urban vitality in the Kanda district.

Use

Office tower

Area

Chiyoda City

Completed

2013

Floors

41 above ground, 3 below

Height

164 m

Developer

Awajicho 2-chome Western District Urban Redevelopment Association (participants: Yasuda Real Estate, Tokyu Land, Tokyo Tatemono)

Architect

Sato Comprehensive Planning

A Mixed-Use Tower Rising from Kanda’s Backstreets

Between Akihabara and Ochanomizu lies Kanda-Awajicho, a district that long preserved the texture of postwar Tokyo’s small merchants and workshops. Waterras, which opened in March 2013, is the product of the Awajicho 2-chome Western District First-Category Urban Redevelopment Project. Its centerpiece, Waterras Tower, rises 41 stories and 3 basement levels to a height of approximately 164 meters. Alongside it stands the 15-story Waterras Annex. The project was carried out by the district’s urban redevelopment association, with Yasuda Real Estate, Tokyu Land Corporation, and Tokyo Tatemono as participating members, and Sato Comprehensive Planning as architect.

The tower integrates offices and commercial spaces in its lower floors with residential units in the upper levels. At ground level, Awaji Plaza provides an open public space in a district that was once a tight weave of narrow lanes — returning breathing room to a neighborhood that had grown dense over generations. The Annex was designed with industry-academia linkage functions in mind, forging ties with nearby universities and research institutions.

Three Kinds of “Wa” and the City’s Memory

The concept behind Waterras is built around three Japanese words all pronounced “wa”: harmony (和), connection (輪), and environment (環). This wordplay captures the project’s intent — to carry forward the culture of the Kanda community rather than simply erase it. A combination of housing, workspaces, and a publicly accessible plaza was conceived to keep this density alive, offering a foothold in the city for a new generation of residents while keeping the neighborhood’s working character intact.

Kanda’s history as a hub of small enterprise and artisan trades made it an area where people lived and worked in close proximity. The stacking of diverse functions in a single high-rise reflects a belief that urban vitality depends not just on offices or retail, but on people choosing to stay.

Summary

Waterras, completed in 2013 as a 41-story tower reaching approximately 164 meters, represents one of Chiyoda City’s answers to the challenge of urban redevelopment that respects community character. Housing, offices, commerce, and industry-academia facilities sit stacked in a single high-rise above the Kanda backstreets. Stand in Awaji Plaza, look up at the tower, and consider the distance — measured not just in meters but in generations — between what this corner of the city once was and what it has become.

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