Iwate Hotelier, Taro Kanko, Receives Support from Mitsubishi Corporation Disaster Relief Foundation

 

Taro Kanko Hotel, Ltd., a hotel operator in Miyako City, Iwate Prefecture in Northeastern Japan, is the latest recipient of investment support from the Mitsubishi Corporation Disaster Relief Foundation (MCDRF). The contribution, 40 million yen in loan funds, complements loan support already being provided by The Kita-Nippon Bank, a local bank, and will go towards assisting Taro Kanko to replace the hotel it lost to the 2011 tsunami. The new hotel, to be named Taro-An, will still be located in Miyako City’s central Taro district, but on higher ground. MCDRF’s contribution gives a definitive boost to Taro Kanko’s recovery, as the hotelier is now able to announce that Taro-An will open on August 1, 2014. As the first guest accommodation facility to be rebuilt in the Taro district of Miyako, the hotel is expected to play a key role in the area’s recovery. Including the reappointment of staff from the original Taro Kanko Hotel, Taro-An will hire some 14 persons, thereby contributing as well to employment generation in the area.

 

The Taro district suffered severe damage from the tsunami following the Great East Japan Earthquake, which engulfed four floors of the Taro Kanko Hotel building leaving nothing but the bare iron frame, completely ruined through to the second floor. Taro Kanko has since been seeking to rebuild, including relocating to higher ground, but progress has been hampered due to rising costs and the inability to obtain all the necessary financing.

 

The new hotel will be housed in a four-floor steel-frame building with a three-floor wooden frame annex, including 13 rooms to accommodate 52 guests. The upper floor will also be equipped with three baths available for private rental. The Taro district is one of the main tourism hubs along the Rikuchu Coastline that stretches from northern Miyagi to northern Iwate Prefectures, and a main center of activity for Miyako residents. The construction of the new hotel will therefore help to restore the economic dynamism of the city. In addition, in order to ensure that the horrors experienced and lessons learned from the 2011 disaster are shared with visitors and transferred to future generations, the hotel is being designed with a space where audiovisual footage of the tsunami as it hit the old Taro Kanko Hotel can be displayed. This will help keep the events of March 11, 2011 alive in memory and, in so doing, contribute to Miyako’s disaster awareness education efforts.

 

MCDRF decided to support Taro Kanko’s new hotel due to its potential for increasing visitor traffic and generating employment, and the overall contribution it can make to revitalization in the region. Practically three years have passed since the Great East Japan Earthquake, but coastal areas that suffered severe damage as a result of the ensuing tsunami are yet to recover from the disaster. The Mitsubishi Corporation Disaster Relief Foundation will continue collaborating with local financial institutions such as The Kita-Nippon Bank to support efforts aimed at employment creation and economic recovery in areas affected by the disaster.

 

 

Location:164-1-3 Aozori, Taro, Miyako-shi, Iwate, Japan

Building Structure:

Area:1,334.56 m²

No. of Rooms:13 (with accommodation capacity for 52 guests)

Room Type:9 Japanese-style rooms; 18 hybrid (Western-Japanese style) rooms

Services Offered:

 Special Features:

 

 

 

1) Headquarters:80-1 Nohara, Taro-cho, Miyako, Iwate, Japan

2) Date Established:September 26, 1985

3) Capital:50 million yen

4) Business Activities:Hotel business

5) Representative:Yuki Matsumoto, CEO

 

 

1) Headquarters:6-7, Chuodori 1-chome, Morioka, Iwate, Japan

2) Date Established:February 1942

3) Investment:7,761 million yen

4) Business Activities:General Banking Services

5) Representative:Yasunori Sato, President

 

 

1)    Headquarters:2-3-1 Marunouchi, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo

2)    Date Founded:March, 2012 (became a foundation May 2012)

3)    Endowment:6 billion yen

4)    Purpose:

To contribute to the recovery of regions affected by the Great East Japan Earthquake through the provision of scholarships and grants for NPOs and social welfare corporations, as well as for recovery of industry and job creation.

5)    Representatives:

- Chairman, Ken Kobayashi (President and CEO, Mitsubishi Corporation)

- Deputy Chairman, Hideyuki Nabeshima (Senior Executive Vice President, Mitsubishi Corporation)

- Executive Director, Yasuhiro Hirota (Senior Vice President, Mitsubishi Corporation)