IHI Sunamachi

The IHI Sunamachi Project is the redevelopment of a former IHI shipyard in Koto City, Japan. This project is an opportunity to test development methods that use community-oriented green architecture to revitalize coastal industrial sites into nodes of disaster resilience. Historically, such industrialized areas have been environmentally destructive and have not interfaced with the surrounding community. As these coastal urban industrial areas around the world become less important in the modern economy, an opportunity arises to reverse those harmful externalities and redesign the space to fit a new, emerging need: disaster resilience. The urban location and uniquely logistics-oriented, coastal specifications of these former industrial sites make them ideal disaster preparedness and response hubs. Because such sites are disconnected from the surrounding residences and occupy environmentally damaged areas, any industrial redevelopment project must also incorporate strategies to both revitalize natural ecosystems and integrate the site into the community.

For this project, the MIT Urban Risk Lab is designing green infrastructure that will both mitigate the effects of climate change and create a landscape that encourages biodiversity. In addition to its positive impact on the natural ecosystem, this design will also serve people in the community, providing opportunities for residents to strengthen connections with one another, interact with greenery and water on a daily basis, and have a resource hub in times of disaster. In order to effectively establish a space that functions as a refuge for residents of disaster-vulnerable neighborhoods—especially in areas where flooding from the Arakawa River and storm surges can last for weeks—the site needs to attract everyday use and become embedded into daily life. To ensure that the design meets the everyday needs and habits of the community, the MIT Urban Risk Lab has been engaging in participatory community development through both workshops and interviews with neighborhood associations, community firefighters, local NPOs related to the waterfront environment, historic shopping district associations, and clergy of the Tomigaoka Hachiman Shrine.

Through the collaboration with IHI, the MIT Urban Risk Lab aims to design a space that functions as a community connector, an economic stimulant, a vibrant green space, and a refuge in times of disaster. By incorporating disaster preparedness into the fabric of a project with so many other benefits for the community, the Lab hopes to create a model for development that uses the built environment to induce habits beneficial to both everyday quality-of-life and disaster resilience. The MIT Urban Risk Lab aims to make this a development model that can be replicated in disaster-prone regions around Japan and the rest of the world.

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The MIT Urban Risk Lab is using the following four core pillars to orient the design: People & Nature, Community Connector, Green & Blue Connector, and Dual-use Bosai Connector. Woven throughout the Sunamachi site will be places not only for natural ecosystems to flourish, but also for people to engage with them. Various green spaces, terraced wetlands, natural buffer zones, and boardwalks all contribute to the revitalization of the green marshes that used to thrive in this area. Permeable surfaces, solar power, and rain collection help make this facility more friendly to the environment. The open, interconnected site plan is ideal for both disaster response logistics and the creation of a welcoming place for people to gather. The buildings and public areas around the site will be adaptable, functioning as parklands, recreation areas, event venues, workplaces, or even just spaces to relax. In fact, almost all of the natural features and community spaces in the design have dual functionality in a disaster scenario: docks can be used by recreational boats and emergency supply boats, wetlands act as a flood buffer, ramps can be used for accessibility and as emergency boat ramps in floods, and much more. These integrated design principles ensure that the redevelopment is beneficial to the natural environment, community well-being, and disaster safety. By combining all of these goals into one project, the culture of bosai (disaster preparedness) is integrated into everyday life. This makes the region much more vibrant, green, and resilient to disasters, all while not interrupting people’s existing habits.

MIT Urban Risk Lab: Miho Mazereeuw, Saeko Nomura Baird, Larisa Ovalles, Aditya Barve, Ekin Bilal, Yanjun Emily Liu, Bryan Wong

Supported by: IHI Corporation