Marunouchi Garage Building (1928)
[Japan's first building dedicated to automobile garages]

Within the site of the Marunouchi 1-3 Project (Mizuho Marunouchi Tower, Japanese Bankers Association, Marunouchi Terrace, to be completed in September 2020), currently under construction, one step into Marunouchi Nakadori Street from Eitai-dori and to the right, Japan's first building dedicated to automobile garages once stood. Domestic automobiles began to be manufactured during the Taisho period, and their numbers began to increase rapidly after the Great Kanto Earthquake. According to a survey conducted by the Mitsubishi Limited Partnership Company's Real Estate Department in 1927 (Showa 2), the number of automobiles normally entering and leaving Marunouchi was about 400, and it was predicted that this number would increase at a rate of 50 per year. This survey was conducted for the Marunouchi Garage Project. The unique building, which could be called a hotel for automobiles, was built under a scheme in which Mitsubishi rented the land and the Okura Zaibatsu took charge of management, and Marunouchi Garage Co., Ltd. was established at the same time as construction began. At the time, cars were extremely valuable, with only 1,500 cars in the Tokyo metropolitan area, so this was a pioneering business that rented out parking spaces.

The building was a six-story building with a semi-basement made of reinforced concrete, with a total floor area of approximately 1,600 tsubo. It had a capacity of 250 cars, and was designed to be self-propelled with a central ramp, allowing cars to go from the first floor entrance to the sixth floor in one minute. The design drawings titled "New Car Garage" are very interesting, as they show the concept behind designing "Japan's first building dedicated to car garages" in the middle of an office district. First, please take a look at the elevation. It has a stone basement and a cornice on top. It has the appearance of a classical style reinforced concrete office building. If there is anything strange about it compared to the surrounding office buildings, it is that the heights of the various parts of the building are different on the left and right. When you look at the cross section, you can see why. The columns on the floor plan are oval-shaped to make it easier for cars to turn around, and there is a repair shop on the semi-basement floor and a car wash behind the first floor. There are also drawings of the drainage system, fire extinguishing system, and gasoline traps that are unique to multi-story parking lots.