Kyoto will raise the building height limit in the area south of JR Kyoto Station to 45 meters from the current 31 meters, with the change to take effect within the year. The city's urban planning council approved the relaxation plan on Friday.
The city wants to encourage redevelopment around the station, revive the local economy and stop residents from leaving. Kyoto has long kept buildings low to protect its historic views, and limits are set district by district in six tiers from 10 to 31 meters.
Partial exceptions have been made before. Kyoto Station Building, which opened in 1997 at about 60 meters, was allowed under a special district designation that exempts it from the rules. The south side of the station, once capped at 20 to 25 meters, was raised to 31 meters along main streets in 2023.
Office space seen as scarce
Business groups have pushed for further loosening. The area around Kyoto Station has fewer rental offices than other major shinkansen stops, and some argue the shortage of office space is driving people away. The city expects the change to spur redevelopment of the many aging buildings there that are due for renewal.
The 45-meter limit will apply after the city issues a public notice. It covers the area between Horikawa-dori and Kawaramachi-dori south of the station. Buildings must meet conditions including a site of at least 500 square meters, offices or research facilities in a form the city approves, such as flexible floor plans, occupying more than half the floor area, and ground-floor commercial or museum space facing a main road.
North side left for later
A panel of experts proposed in April that the south side be raised to 45 meters and the north side to as much as 60 meters. The city put only the south side before the council this time, leaving the north for later.
Opposition from citizens' groups and the Kyoto Buddhist Association accompanied the building of Kyoto Station. Mayor Koji Matsui said the north side has not changed in decades. "We will take time to discuss the whole space, including how to reorganize the bus terminal and how people move through it," he said.