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JMA -KANSAI OFFICE-

JMA -KANSAI OFFICE-

Urban development in Osaka in the future,
from the perspective of eight people from the Osaka Office

JMA’s Kansai Office has worked on many projects, mainly in western Japan, such as Osaka and Kyoto, and has put into practice designs that weave modern elements into tradition and culture.
A major characteristic is making the most of the historic streetscapes while incorporating a sensitivity unique to Japan through cooperation with artisans.

Besides urban development and building design, the office has also put efforts into activities to transmit the attraction of architecture throughout Osaka, such as Open House Osaka.
With Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai, Japan also being held this year, attention is also focusing on “Osaka-ness” and the urban image that the city is aiming for.

This round-table discussion brought together all eight members of the Kansai Office. The members represent a variety of ages, genders, and backgrounds, and some are originally from Osaka or the Kansai region, while others are from completely unrelated regions. They talked about the Kansai Office’s initiatives and the kind of urban development that JMA/PC&PJ is aiming for.

Kensuke Joko

Senior Managing Officer, Project Director
(at the time of publication)

Place of Birth: Tokyo, Japan
Kazuhisa Otsu

Managing Officer, KANSAI OFFICE General Manager
(at the time of publication)

Place of Birth: Mie Prefecture, Japan
Hironori Yoshida

Senior Associate (at the time of publication)

Place of Birth: Wakayama Prefecture, Japan
Nodoka Honda

Associate (at the time of publication)

Place of Birth: Osaka Prefecture, Japan
Chigusa Sunagawa

Place of Birth: Okinawa Prefecture, Japan
Koki Kobayashi

Place of Birth: Chiba Prefecture, Japan
Honoka Akamatsu

Place of Birth: Hyogo Prefecture, Japan
Yuta Miyazaki

Place of Birth: Shiga Prefecture, Japan

Miyazaki

To Yoshida-san, who has been at JMA’s Kansai Office the longest, including the period at the previous Kansai Office: What inspired you to join the firm?

Yoshida

Initially, it was because an older student at school was working here part-time. At the time, we had an office in Nakanoshima, and I was impressed by the environment that allowed me to work while looking at the National Museum of Art, Osaka. We then moved to Nishi-Honmachi, and I made a lot of models, in addition to creating shop drawings as a part-time job. I had only made all-white models while I was a student, so I became completely obsessed with detailed modeling. I was so into it that I would put my work first over hanging out with my friends.

Joko

If we include part-time work as well, Yoshida-san has been here longer than you, hasn’t he, Otsu-san?

Otsu

After spending a period of part-time work in the Kansai Office, I was assigned to Tokyo and became a regular employee. The staff moved around frequently at the time and we were considering designs mainly using models, which was hard work.

Joko

I was also doing design study with models while wielding colored paper, laser cutters, and other tools. I have fond memories of thinking about designs while I looked at the models night after night.

Yoshida

The Kansai Office continued its activities for many years, through a relocation from Nakanoshima to Nishi-Honmachi. Eventually, the firm had a rapid increase in overseas projects, which required collaboration and cooperation among staff members, and we ultimately decided to concentrate our locations in the Tokyo headquarters.

Sunagawa

What then happened that led to the Kansai Office reopening?

Otsu

The characteristics of architecture—being rooted in the area where it is found—imposed higher barriers for engaging Tokyo for projects in the Kansai region because of the distance, so the company felt that it still needed a Kansai location. Right around that time, major projects were starting up in Kansai, such as the Expo and the redevelopment of Umekita, so we began talking about launching a Kansai office again. At first, we had an office in Kitahama with two people, including me, but as the scope of operations grew, we had Yoshida-san come back, too, and we relocated to our current, larger site in Tenmabashi.

Yoshida

Following our reopening, we started working on a variety of projects in Kansai, too. All our clients have the impression that JMA’s strength is in large-scale matters, but we actually handle work and offer a wide range of designs from the grand to the small. We proactively built relationships with new clients in Kansai and have now organized a regime that allows us to take on different matters.

Kobayashi

There are things that we can do specifically because we have a location in Kansai, right?

Honda

First, I think having a location in the region generates trust. In Kansai real estate firms, the managers have been rooted in the region for a long time and build up trust amid relationships where people can see them face to face. It is the same for us designers, and having our office nearby is exactly what allows us to respond promptly and carefully.

Joko

From my perspective as someone who was born and raised in Tokyo and who worked in Tokyo for many years, I feel that projects are founded upon stronger trust relationships between people here than in Tokyo.

Otsu

The Kansai region has its own commercial customs. It has historically been customary to deliver quotes and invoices by hand, and the culture of directly thanking people has strong roots.

Miyazaki

I have heard that traffic is especially congested on the so-called “gotōbi” (days ending in 5 or 0).

Honda

Cities and values may have changed over time, but trust relationships between people still remain the same. Expressing thanks and gratitude in person rather than by email—this culture is typical of Kansai.

Kobayashi

I also got a real sense of the strength of connections with people after coming to Kansai. When I went drinking by myself shortly after being assigned to the Kansai Office as a new graduate, the bar staff and other patrons began talking with me as if it were nothing and bought food for me, too. I have also received a rice cooker and a water heater from people. Osaka feels like a “motherly” city. It is also a fun city to walk around. Umeda and Nanba in particular are busy with events, and it was refreshing to see the World Championships when they were held there.

Honda

The easily understood urban structure is also one of its attractions. Tokyo spreads out around ring routes and is a little hard to understand, but Osaka is organized along suji and dōri (north-south and east-west streets) like a chessboard, and I do not lose my sense of direction. Just walking along Midōsuji gives you a clear idea of the structure of the city.

Joko

But there are a lot of similar station names around Umeda—I got confused when I first came to Kansai, and I still can’t get used to it (laughs).

Sunagawa

I was born and raised in Okinawa and joined JMA’s Kansai Office after graduating from university in Taiwan. It was something of a surprise when I heard that I had been assigned to the Kansai Office, but I was also looking forward to contact with the Kansai dialect. When I could not understand Kansai dialect in a conversation, Akamatsu-san helped me as an “interpreter,” and now I am so used to the dialect that it nearly comes out naturally.

Joko

What do you think about Osaka as a city?

Sunagawa

The amount of greenery leaves a strong impression. The areas around Osaka Castle and Morinomiya are especially pleasant to walk around. Okinawa is well known for the nature of its seas and mountains, but Osaka has nearby waterside areas and urban greenery, giving it a different attraction.

Otsu

People who visit Osaka seem to feel that it has a lot of greenery, but once you have lived here a long time, you get a real sense of how few street trees there are. Still, the waterside is certainly rich, and I believe this is one feature unique to Osaka.

Joko

Besides the natural environment, the sense of closeness to other people is also attractive, isn’t it? The closeness in Osaka is just right for me, and I feel that it suits me. The city of Osaka is also more compact than Tokyo and is fun to walk around. It truly is a walkable city, I think.

Kobayashi

I think so, too. In addition to the urban structure being like a chessboard and easy to understand, each town is gathered together to make it compact, so if you walk intuitively, you can reach several different places. That is not always the case in Kantō.

Joko

How is JMA’s regime of conducting operations across three locations? Tell us about collaboration between the Tokyo Head Office and the offices in western Japan and Iwakuni.

Akamatsu

I am currently working with staff from the Tokyo Head Office on interior design. Our ages are similar, so we can chat casually and communicate closely. Tokyo has many staff members who specialize in interiors, so working together with Tokyo is a great strength.

Sunagawa

I also often collaborate with the landscaping specialists at the Tokyo Head Office and other landscaping firms, and the many opportunities for involvement with entire projects, from architecture to interiors and landscaping, is another attraction of the smaller Kansai Office.

Otsu

What is important when collaborating is a stance of paying attention to the other person’s opinions. Listening skills and communication skills should also lead to better work, I suggest.

Joko

Regardless of the number of years of experience, the opinions of younger staff members often provide major hints in projects. The stance of listening to others is truly important.

Akamatsu

Having my own opinion heard from the first year after joining the company formed a strong impression. You propose something, and if it is good, it will be adopted. I really like the corporate culture of respecting younger voices and the atmosphere in the Kansai Office.

Otsu

It has always been that way. César Pelli, who was Mitsui-san’s former teacher and who we also collaborated with, advised us to listen to younger staff members and interns as well and to take on their opinions thoroughly without rejecting them. I believe this culture has firmly taken root in JMA, too.

Akamatsu

I was surprised at the environment where I could use what I had learned at university in actual work, straight after joining the firm. You can listen to what the older members say and then think about it and put it into shape in your own way. I think an environment like this, where you can learn and put it into practice at the same time, is really precious. Also, the Kansai Office has an atmosphere that allows everyone to casually talk to each other about the things they are doing at the moment, which is a lot of fun.

Honda

The Kansai Office is just the right size, and being able to see what the person next to you is doing is one of its strengths. We can move as a team, while talking to each other naturally.

Yoshida

Our project collaborations between the Tokyo Head Office and the Western Japan and Iwakuni offices are gradually deepening, and there are more and more opportunities for staff in each location to share thoughts and ideas. As a matter of fact, the close interactions on the projects I am working on have produced a sense of team unity that surpasses our different locations.

Otsu

It is important to “meddle in a good way” with each other. Telling each other what you notice without reservation leads to creating something better.

Honda

Being able to build relationships face to face with staff at other locations at the initial stages let me communicate smoothly, even with the rise in remote interactions since the COVID-19 pandemic. We still use these tools and collaborate closely, such as by sharing drawings and checking about any queries right there.

Miyazaki

Being able to have the staff from all locations gather in Tokyo for a meetup at the event to celebrate JMA’s 30th anniversary this year was really great. Being involved with people from other locations at an early stage after joining the company was a very good experience for me.

Kobayashi

Going to Tokyo and being able to collaborate with the staff there was also an impressive experience.

Otsu

While collaborations remotely and with other locations are becoming more common, Kansai is capable of moving speedily as a whole team, precisely because we are a small location. I think that being able to turn our strength to projects that need to be fought out over the short term is one of our attractions.

Joko

In addition, Kansai offers the benefit of living near where you work. Having work and lifestyle at a short distance from each other is a strength shared with regional locations, like Iwakuni.

Miyazaki

The Kansai Office has entrusted one job after another to younger members like me, too, from not long after I joined the firm, which is hugely motivating.

Otsu

The Kansai Office only has a few members, so the scope entrusted to each is broader and it can be a challenging place for younger employees, but that also makes it an environment with a greater sense of responsibility and more opportunities for growth.

Akamatsu

I was also nervous at first because I thought it was a place for the elite few, but I have been able to grow through each step of my experiences in an environment that actually let me take on challenges.

Sunagawa

I am sometimes shocked to have a big job suddenly assigned to me, though (laughs).

Yoshida

But that is also because you are trusted. We do not give work to people who cannot do it (laughs).

Otsu

That is the culture of the Kansai Office: Being trusted with work among an elite few and growing up. That experience will lead to the next job, I think.

Joko

Do you feel that Osaka and the cities of Kansai have changed because of the Expo?

Otsu

I think the cities have got overwhelmingly tidier. The subways in Osaka and Kobe especially seem to have become more beautiful than I had imagined.

Joko

In Tokyo, development in urban areas is making ongoing progress, but in the Kansai region, it tends to be concentrated in one area. My impression is that there will be difficulties in moving to the next stage, such as the bayside areas.

Otsu

Even so, development in the east and west has recently become more vigorous, in addition to the north and south of the city, and it is expanding into Nakanoshima and Dōjima in the west and the area around Morinomiya and the university in the east, for example.

Joko

My impression is that Tokyo has orderly development that is making ongoing progress, but what are the characteristics unique to Osaka?

Honda

Compared to before, developments where plazas and commercial facilities coexist have been moving ahead recently, and green spaces for relaxation have been increasing in Osaka. For example, in places like Grand Green Osaka, people naturally gather in the green plaza, which creates energy and leads to commercial activity. The attraction of these spaces calls to people, resulting in economic movement, and this flow seems to be finding its place in Kansai as well. Simply having a comfortable space to spend time causes people to gather, which then creates value, even without holding special events. In fact, the area has vibrant energy on weekdays and weekends, and many foreigners visit as well.

Joko

It is ideal when a beautiful space and commercial facilities resonate in a smooth cycle, isn’t it?

Otsu

Spaces where people naturally gather and have fun like these are a feature particular to Osaka, you know. I think Osaka is, of course, a city of entertainment.

Kobayashi

Kansai values historical culture, not just new development.

Otsu

It has many old cities, like Nara, Kyoto, and Shiga, and there is a depth of history. What is more, Western architecture also survives in the central areas.

Honda

Open House Osaka was also representative of this, but Osaka continues to carefully use its older buildings. The new and the old coexist, and the urban structure like lines on a chessboard is easy to understand, too. Being able to move around within walking distance and to easily get an intuitive sense of direction and the individuality of each area is also attractive. But it is not majestic like Kyoto, and the ability to keep using older architecture within a nostalgic atmosphere is also a feature of Osaka.

Yoshida

What form do you want Osaka to take in the future?

Honda

I want it to treasure the old, while making the most of each area’s individual character in new developments. Also, to retain the city’s “compactness” while preventing development from being de-individualized. Isn’t it more interesting to be individual, including the inconveniences that it brings?

Joko

You know, it might be interesting if we could have urban development along the axis of the Seto Inland Sea, from Iwakuni to the Yumeshima area. If we could link the seaside cities and towns and the island around the sea, beyond the framework of local governments, we might be able to see urban development in a form that nobody has ever seen before. Perhaps this is the dream of Mitsui, who was born in Iwakuni, Yamaguchi, which faces the Seto Inland Sea (laughs).

Otsu

The Kansai region has many historic businesses and companies with head office functions. Our ability to connect to these businesses is a strength of those who have a Kansai location. Let’s further our collaborations with these businesses in the future, even in fields like product development and interior renovations.