Companies tasked with redeveloping the site of the iconic Tsukiji fish market in Tokyo said Wednesday they plan to invest 900 billion yen ($5.7 billion) in the project, which includes building a multi-purpose stadium.
The consortium, including real estate developer Mitsui Fudosan Co., said it aimed to turn the location into a "gateway to Tokyo" that would draw people worldwide for sporting events and international conferences.
"We will promote urban development by valuing elements such as the excitement brought by sports and Japan's world-renowned cuisine," Mitsui Fudosan President Takashi Ueda said, while also noting that he hopes the project will help "enhance the international competitiveness" of the Japanese capital.
The redevelopment area is roughly 19 hectares of land owned by the Tokyo metropolitan government. Located just 2 kilometers from JR Tokyo Station, the area has often been described as "the last prime spot in the heart of the capital."
The planned stadium, with a capacity of 50,000, is scheduled to be completed by March 2033, with a layout also able to accommodate music events and exhibitions.
With The Yomiuri Shimbun Holdings one of the 11 companies involved in the project, there is speculation that the stadium could become the new ballpark of its professional baseball team, Yomiuri Giants, currently based at the aging Tokyo Dome.
Toshikazu Yamaguchi, the media conglomerate's president, has only commented, "We are not considering relocating (the team) as a premise."
The redevelopment project will also include constructing multiple high-rise buildings to house hotels and offices. It will also establish a transportation hub for autonomous vehicles and the integration of flying cars, seen as an emerging technology.
Tomohide Yamamura, president of Toyota Fudosan Co., a Toyota Motor Corp. group company, said his company is eager to play a role in "connecting urban development with mobility" as a participant in the project.
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