Kyoyamato and
the Park Hyatt Kyoto
The Park Hyatt Kyoto, the second Park Hyatt brands luxury hotel in Japan, opened on October 30, 2019 along with Kyoyamato, a restaurant with a storied history of more than 140 years. Takenaka performed development, design and construction for this project in Kyoto's Higashiyama, a world-famous tourist attraction.
Kyoyamato and the Park Hyatt Kyoto ~Historic restaurant and luxury hotel~
Kyoyamato Co., Ltd., which operates Kyoyamato restaurant, owned several traditional wooden buildings, parts of which dated back to the Edo period. These were valuable structures that had been designated as historical buildings in Kyoto, but they had become dilapidated over time. Thereupon, Takenaka made a commercialization proposal that would preserve and restore these wooden buildings by applying our extensive technical expertise and attract an international luxury hotel.
Takenaka has owned and operated two hotels in the U.S., including the Grand Hyatt Kauai Resort & Spa, which was a development project we handled in Hawaii 30 years ago. As there existed a long-standing relationship of trust, it was the Hyatt that we invited as the hotel operator. Then plans materialized after discussions between the two companies.
As the hotel ownership, Takenaka held repeated discussions on how to maximize synergies between the restaurant and the hotel. Generally, it is said that in order to be profitable, a hotel will have 150-200 guest rooms, but on this project guest rooms were limited to 70 in order to maintain harmony with the surrounding scenery, historical buildings and gardens of Kyoyamato. Additionally, the hotel is operated by Hyatt while its signature dining establishment is operated by Kyoyamato. Both companies have been able to coexist independently, and by combining the world-leading brand of the Park Hyatt Hotel, and the tradition and culture of the fabled restaurant, Kyoyamato, unprecedented new value has been created. By adding that luxury value, we were able to ensure business feasibility even by limiting the number of guest rooms. We made it our mission to not only ensure feasibility but also connect a Kyoto identity and its stylized culture to the future, and these plans were fulfilled.
The building site is in an area where building height and surface area are restricted by municipal landscape ordinances. While limiting the height, we preserved Kyoyamato's wooden buildings and garden. In order to build the new hotel, we carried out large-scale excavation work, which was unprecedented for Kyoto, such that about 60 percent of the hotel's floor area would be submerged into a conventional basement. Since the slope on the east side of the site was designated as a landslide special cautionary zone, construction involved using our civil engineering technology to embed steel pipes up to lengths of 27.6 meters into a retaining wall that was 61 meters long and 13 meters high. The hotel was subsequently completed within the height limit, and the special cautionary zone designation was removed. Consequently, our work was highly appraised by neighborhood residents for having increased the safety of the local community.
Sectional View: Comparison of conventional ground level (blue line: south side road, red line: courtyard) and the completed ground level.
Tradition and innovation ~ "Designing a landscape engraved by time" ~
Creativity that enhanced the synergistic effect between the restaurant and the hotel was applied to the building arrangement as well as the exterior design.
From a desire to leave the historical scenery of Kyoto's Higashiyama to the future, our aim was to create a "landscape as a grouping of tiled roofs" that would connect with the townscape where tiled roofs overlap each other, and to bring the garden and building into harmony as one.
Video : Kyoyamato and the Park Hyatt Kyoto blending into the townscape of Kyoto's Higashiyama
By arranging the hotel into several buildings that make use of a topography with height differences, we planned a relationship using the natural surrounding scenery that would become a vista of the olden townscape while the new buildings and historical buildings formed a foreground of each other through the garden.
Overlooking Yasaka Pagoda from Kyoyamato's Soyo-tei after restoration The position and height of the hotel restaurant and bar in the photos below was fixed so as to not lose the scenic view of Yasaka Pagoda.
The tea lounge of the Park Hyatt Kyoto overlooking the buildings and preserved gardens of Kyoyamato
View from the Park Hyatt Kyoto's Pagoda House
As the roof gently extends into the eaves, it feels as if you are looking at Kyoto City from a mountainside residence.
We attempted to bring Kyoyamato's wooden buildings into harmony with the existing garden by lowering the center point of the nearby guest room building and partially submerging it in the ground with the eaves provided at a position below the upper story.
Park Hyatt Kyoto guest room
A sense of unity with the garden and view was created by setting the guest room eaves in a lower position.
Guest room building of the Park Hyatt Kyoto in harmony with the Kyoyamato Suikokan building and the park
In addition, the building location, orientation and size were arranged through careful examination to ensure privacy while allowing guests to view the surrounding historic townscape from many places throughout the facility. In this way, we aimed for harmony with the past while also creating new value.
Approximately three-hundred-million-year-old stones that were presented by the Executive Chairman of Hyatt Hotels Corporation, Thomas J. Pritzker, after crossing the ocean from Aspen Colorado, and stones from the Horyuji Temple, which had been in the Kyoyamato garden, were arranged in the Eishin-tei / Pritzker Garden, which is located at the hotel entrance.
The Park Hyatt Kyoto's Eishin-tei / Pritzker Garden, Landscape architect: Yasuo Kitayama
We had also aimed to create new designs in the hotel interior. Accordingly, we did not just incorporate traditional Japanese designs, but rather we combined our own gracefully refined sense of design with the essence of international hospitality from a well-known design firm, tonychi & associates, which had been involved in designing the Park Hyatt Shanghai and others.
"The Living Room" lounge space at the Park Hyatt Kyoto
At "the Living Room," guests are welcomed by a place where the warmth of materials, such as a gilded ceiling, artwork, petal-like illumination and a walnut reception, as well as a flame flickering in the fireplace echo elegance and tranquility.
Video : Interview with Mr. Tony Chi
Traditional and modern construction methods ~Combining the wisdom of our forebears and modern technology~
Even in the building construction, both traditional and modern construction methods were used. When repairing the damaged buildings, we made maximum use of existing things and reused materials as much as possible. In the work to only replace defective places, advanced techniques such as color adjustments and patch accuracy were required. For defective areas such as columns, we employed traditional techniques such as the joints that are used in construction of shrines, temples and teahouses, and we reused clay that had peeled off from earthen walls, and repainted these areas.
Kyoyamato's Suikokan that was repaired with the traditional technique, "basara jointing."
In accordance with the new hotel construction when reviewing the building layout, it was necessary to move the Suiko-an and Koro-an wooden buildings that were used as tearooms for the restaurant, but it was not possible to disassemble and reassemble these structures because of their high historical value. In such cases, structure uplifting and moving methods are generally used, but this lengthens construction periods. Accordingly, on this occasion we employed a "structure suspension" method whereby the entire buildings were hoisted with a crane. Since these were old buildings, if there were any misalignment or deviation by even a few millimeters, columns and beams could have broken, and the existing walls could have collapsed. However, through careful attention to detail and delicate work whereby repeated checks were made before hoisting, we were able to bring this dynamic structure suspension to a successful conclusion.
Video : Kyoyamato's Soyo-tei floating in the air (while hoisted)
Video : Kyoyamato's Suiko-an and Koro-an traveling on a road at night
IIn this way, we were able to add new value to historically significant buildings through the wisdom of our forebears and modern technology, and then pass on this architecture to the future. In addition to our customers, we also received high praise from Kyoto City, which promotes the preservation of historic buildings.
People in Charge
Tomoyuki Shirahase
In charge of design
This project consisted of leaving in place an old restaurant's wooden buildings that had been aged by time along with its garden, having them coexist with an international luxury hotel, and creating new scenery without losing the original setting. It was much more difficult than erecting a building on an empty lot, but it was also a very rewarding experience.
How could I make the views from hotel rooms look more beautiful?
In particular, how to obtain space between places close to existing buildings was very challenging. I hope that the people who visit the hotel will be able to enjoy decor from places all over the world. As the designer it is a great pleasure for me to see guests in wonderment at various places. This is what made all my efforts worthwhile.
Toshio Sagara
In charge of construction
When I was appointed as the site manager, my first thoughts were to give consideration to local residents as well as tourists, both of whom there were many near the construction site. This was my first experience with such a situation since joining the company.
In devising the construction schedule, we shortened the work time with noise and vibration on Saturdays and holidays, which resulted in words of appreciation and gratitude from the neighbors. It was heartwarming to feel that our having always acted in good faith had been communicated to these people.
Without knowing that I worked for Takenaka, guests would talk to me. One day I heard, "This building looks really nice. Well, after all it is a Takenaka building." With these words of encouragement, I would like to continue to create works that will delight and impress our customers and other stakeholders.
Yosuke Takeda
In charge of development
As collaboration between a foreign luxury hotel and an age-old restaurant is a very rare initiative, this project, which was carried out in the famous tourist area Ninen-zaka, attracted global attention. Since the three parties, which included Takenaka, would coexist and coprosper over a long period of time, it was my job to craft a business scheme that could demonstrate a synergistic effect by harnessing the respective strengths of each party.
When the development concept was initially announced, local people voiced concern about large-scale construction that they had never experienced, but at the time of opening, we heard, "This has become a good thing beyond what we had imagined. We hope it will have a ripple effect on Ninen-zaka in the future." Together with feelings of joy, I think we are now well grounded and in a good position to conduct future business.
Takenaka aims for urban creation with security and prosperity. While strengthening the deep ties that have been cultivated with our partners and the local community through this project, we are willing to involve this iconic project for years as the hotel ownership, and we would like for the facilities to continue to be loved by guests as well as the local community.
