Section 1. Expanding the Building Management Business

Thus, construction of the North Wing of the Shin-Daibiru Building resumed and was completed on October 25, 1963. The main structure used earthquake-resistant and fire-resistant steel-frame reinforced concrete construction with nine aboveground floors, four underground floors, four penthouse floors, a depth of 17 m from the ground surface, an eave height of 31 m, and a penthouse height of 43 m. It had a total floor area of 53,967 m², giving the Shin-Daibiru Building a total floor space of 81,629 m² with the previously completed South Wing included.

The exterior and interior design were similar to the South Wing, but the large showcase windows on the first floor were made with two layers of tempered glass 12 mm thick to protect against storm surges—a lesson learned from the 2nd Muroto Typhoon. The same specifications were applied to the first floor of the South Wing. Putting a large parking garage with a total floor area of 11,495 m² on the basement floors of the North Wing also proved to be a smart decision.

The Shin-Daibiru Building was the first building in Japan to have a rooftop tree garden. A garden roughly 3,300 m² in size was established on the building’s roof. It contained approximately 4,300 trees and 1,100 other plants.

After the building opened, there was an oversupply of office space due to the continuous construction of new office buildings, and although the occupancy rate reached 80.6% by the end of March 1964, five months after opening, these results were not satisfactory.