Overview
- On August 6, the Kagawa Prefectural Board of Education declined to postpone the scheduled teardown of the Kenzo Tange–designed gymnasium, citing a lack of concrete reuse proposals.
- In March 2025, the prefecture approved roughly ¥1 billion in its fiscal 2025 general budget for demolition and opened a bidding process on August 7 for contractors to carry out the dismantling.
- The private “旧香川県立体育館再生委員会” offered to fund seismic retrofits and convert the cable-suspended-roof structure into a hotel and cultural facilities, but officials said the proposal lacked a clear ownership entity and detailed viability assessment.
- Vacant since 2014 after failed retrofit bids, the former Kagawa Prefectural Gymnasium is celebrated for its ship-like suspended roof, making it one of Japan’s earliest modernist landmarks.
- Officials maintain that prior efforts—including a 2021 market survey for private proposals—proved adaptive-reuse plans unviable without public subsidies and that immediate action is needed to address seismic risks and aging infrastructure.