National City Apartment Demolition Nears Completion After Construction Halted for Mount Fuji View

The demolition work is now reaching its final stages

“Millions of yen were spent on the apartment for Mount Fuji, only for it to disappear.”

In June of last year, the “landscape issue” regarding the apartment in Kunitachi City, Tokyo, being built by Sekisui House became a hot topic. The ‘Grand Maison Kunitachi Fujimi Street’ was a 10-story condominium located on ‘Fujimi Street,’ which stretches westward from the rotary in front of Kunitachi Station. This street is famous for offering a direct view of Mount Fuji.

The apartment building began construction in January 2023 and was nearly completed by June 2024. As construction progressed, the view of Mount Fuji from the street became obstructed, and there were criticisms about the significant impact on the view. In response, Sekisui House issued a release on June 11 of the same year, stating:

“Although there were no legal deficiencies, the situation was caused by insufficient consideration of the view of Mount Fuji from Fujimi Street, especially from distant perspectives (omitted). Despite being close to completion, we made the decision to halt the project.”

Although there were no legal issues, the decision to “prioritize the view of Mount Fuji” became a major topic, especially on talk shows at the time. Local residents recall the commotion:

“I had heard that the exterior was completed, and some interior works were almost finished. It looked like a modern building with several glassed-in bay windows. When the news broke, there were onlookers and media coming to see the property, causing quite a stir. It was a huge commotion.”

Demolition work began in late July last year. Ten months after the commotion, when revisiting the site, about half of the building had been demolished, and construction fences were put up. The problematic view had been restored. Although local residents were passing by, no one stopped to look at the apartment.

As the demolition progressed, the view on ‘Fujimi Street’ had returned as promised by the name. A nearby shop owner said, “With the demolition of the building advancing, Mount Fuji has been visible again this spring.”

The demolition is expected to be completed by August of this year. With the priority given to Mount Fuji, the sound of work was the only thing echoing in the area where the apartment once stood.