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It is now 5:56 am in japan and I am giving up the campaign to save (and enjoy!) the sukiya-zukuri tea house in Fujisawa.

In 3 days of indiegogo campaign I received: 2 Contributions, 498 Visits, 135 Referrals.

http://igg.me/at/teahouse
I know that many of you sent hundreds of mails to spread the voice, and I commend you for all your advice and help.
I converted to cash my life insurance policy to have the funds to sign the contract tomorrow but the there is not a solid option to bring the project to completion.

The house will not be touched until 2/10 but we will not have time to organize the meetings required and to meet the deadline offered by the new ownership.
They may accept a lump sum to buy some time but of course there is no guarantee they would consider such an option alltogether.
Besided, if I could not realize the project with so many interested and proactive prospects (like this time), it is not likely that 13 days will change the final result.

Time is running out and I have to take the hard decision.
There is no point to bring all the parties to the meeting tomorrow so I will call everybody (the contractor, the new owner, the old owner, the shipping company) at 12:00 JST.

Said this, my mind is repeating an italian saying: “la speranza e` l`ultima a morire”
(lit. translation: hope is the last to die)

If you have one more idea, one more contact to propose this project, please do it now.
The short link to the campaign is:

http://igg.me/at/teahouse

Thank you for everything!

I hope you had a great start of 2016.

Please note:

1. starting new homepage dedicated to relocation projects:
   Sorry, I am a little behind. It has been very busy and I am giving priority to the matching for the tea house since we do not have much time.
   I will keep you posted. I am still in doubt about the naming of the new activity. I am undecided between “re-heritage.org” and “save-japan.org”
   I would be grateful to hear your opinion once again.
2. temple: the owner/priest is now busy alienating another property and it is better not to mix the two topics as she could get confused. The religious association will cease to exist around mid of january. The closing for the other property will be at the end of february so I am planning to proceed with the site inspection and quotation in the beginning of march 2016.
3. tea house: I uploaded some pictures and videos.
   • outside
   • inside

Video (here below)

Please let me know if you are interested in adopting the tea house.
Demolition work must start at the end of january.

All the Best//

iacopo torrini

Here is the quotation for the demolition.
I added below in red the costs which are not included in the above.

Here is a schematic plan of the building.

click here for an aerial view of the site

Please refer to the previous entries on this topic for more details.
Contact me asap if interested because I will will not be able to commit to the demolition company without an official backing.

contact iacopo -> japanbartokdesign.com

This is an update about the tea-house relocation project.
The land will be sold at the end of january and the new owner is planning to demolish the building and garden.

DEMOLITION SCHEDULE:

january – 1st week: I will go on site to meet the old owner and new owner. (I will also take detailed pictures and measurements of the building) january – 2nd week: I will need the decision and commitment from the perspective foster-owner january – 3rd week: we will start demolition. (I am already in touch with two specialized companies)

COST: from 4 to 6 million yen (36,000 USD ~ 50,000 USD)
Of course the more detailed is the demolition (to reuse also roof riles, flooring planks, ceiling framing etc.) the higher the demolition cost. Anyway this will result in a more original building and enable savings in the construction phase.

The demolition will take about 4 weeks and I am planning to obtain the approval from the new owner by convincing him he will save the money and time for the demolition anyway.

SHIPPING SCHEDULE:

to avoid storage fees, I am planning to load all the material directly on containers so we would be ready for shipping as soon as end of february. Ocean freight takes about 1-2 months according to the destination. I think one 40′ container should be enough but considering also items from the garden and to stay on the safe side, I am computing 2 containers, drayage and devanning. COST: 2 million yen (17,000 USD)

CONSTRUCTION SCHEDULE:

Construction would take about 5 months (if it was done in japan). According to local legislations / construction methods / availability of manpower and materials it may take more.

The company doing the demolition is also available to go abroad to coordinate the construction! I think that there are 3 options:
1) bring all the craftsmen from japan
2) provide one experienced carpenter to instruct/supervise and use local workers.
3) a mix of the two options above.

COST: from 20 to 25 million yen (170,000 USD ~ 210,000 USD)

In both cases, I would travel together with the contractor principal about once a month (five times) to coordinate the work.

COST: about 2 million yen (17,000 USD) + airplane tickets

Please contact me by email at japan@bartokdesign.com if interested.
TOTAL COST: about 35 million yen (300,000 USD) + reinbursable expenses

Dear friends,

Recently I am receiving and sharing some information that are not directly related with the wooden bathtubs. I believe it is important to save historical buildings even if minor (or actually even more because they are minor…)
To me, a basic “machi-ya” old house conveys more emotions and sense of space than tens of monumental temples or shiny revamped castles to satisfy the “shutter chance” that makes the tourists happy…

But, I am not here to make polemics. I feel that I am in the position of bridging the “fading” traditional japan with the japanese lovers worldwide and I am committed to fulfill this duty.
I just uncovered the tip of an iceberg and I think that there is a lot that can be done in terms of saving old buildings and thus (hopefully … some day…) stimulating a new sense of value among the japanese.

But I am aware that not all of the fans of japanese baths are also interested in this heritage-buildings-salvage project.
So I decided to build a new site for this purpose.
I need some time, maybe 30-45 days but I will split the 2 projects, promise.
So if you are not interested, do not quit reading this, bear with me one more month.
Will you, please?

Let me then give now a short update about the projects as today (+ there is a new entry!):

1) salvage of the Osaka temple (transfer): the buddhist priest is elderly and very conservative. He is worried that any movement around the building now could ruin his negotiation to sell the land to a developer specialized in rental apartment buildings.
But I am in touch thru a very sensitive real estate agent and as soon as the situation clears I will prepare a survey and an estimate of the cost to dismantle the wooden structure with roof tiles, doors, fixtures and acessories. Once I have an idea of the sizes and the volumes I will also provide an estimate of the shipping cost.
I cannot set a certain date but It will be as soon as possible.

2) salvage of the Teahouse near Enoshima: our action and especially the sharing on facebook (done by my the owners` relative) produced a positive action!
They decided to remove the property from the market for now.
(I think they are considering some offers by restaurants interested in renting the property and continuing the tea-house business).
I cannot say yet it is safe, and will keep an eye on the situation, but it seems the emergency is settled at the moment!

3) Well, there is another adoption project on the table. I already presented back in january the case of an australian friend who owns the prestigious “Shizuka Ryokan” in Victoria – Australia and is looking for a buyer.

https://www.bartokdesign.com/japan/0-blog_news/japanese_ryokan_for_sale.php
Peter and his wife want to move back close to elderly relatives and are offering the keys to this amazing business!
Get the buildings, the trees, the kangaroos and all the clients and achievements for AUS 1,750,000
The deal he was working on got stuck at the end and the property is again on the market!
Contact Peter at info**at**shizuka.com.au (of course substitute the **at**) for more details.

Again, I will keep in touch and I wish you a relaxing weekend!

Best//

iacopo torrini

mail for any question/problem to: japan**at**bartokdesign.com

As you know, I am taking action to find an alternative location for a wooden structure temple in Osaka. The site is being developed and the building will be demolished unless it is transferred before then.
This story was spotted by a japanese woman who is trying to save the stunning beautiful japanese house of a relative near Enoshima (Tokyo area).

The relative is elderly and cannot maintain the house anymore. It is about 479 sq.mt. of land in a prestigious residential area in Fujisawa (near Yokohama) so the price is quite high (about 140-150 million yen.)
In japan land has value while the building is totally devaluated after 25-30 years.
The problem is that it is difficult to get a return on the investment so the only thing that real estate agencies can propose is to demolish the building and garden and split the lot in commercially viable lots of 150 sq.mt. which can be easily sold at a high price.

The building is 1 story high and a floor area of about 87 sq.mt. It was built 90 years ago and has been used as a school for tea ceremony for the past 20 years. It was built with selected materials and is in pristine conditions every nook and corner. It consists of 3 tea rooms.

USAGE:

Option 1)
Of course it would be great if somebody is interested to buy it and use for tea ceremony, ikebana class or other traditional japanese art.
It is 4 Km (15 minutes by car) from Enoshima and the area will be flooded with tourists in view of the olympic games.

Option 2)
It can be used as a restaurant but not as a hotel (local regulations.)

Option 3)
It can be used as a residence by a real japan lover (but note it has no car-park and bathroom/shower so some work is needed)

Option 4)
If there is no buyer and they decide to demolish the building, I am looking for somebody interested in adopting it. The building can be dismantled and reassembled elsewhere.
As soon as we have more information about the temple project, I will be able to provide an estimate about the cost.

Please let me know if you are interested or know anybody who might…

All the Best//

iacopo torrini

The response to my previous mailing about the salvage of a wooden structure temple in Osaka was just overwhelming.
I am confident we will be able to find the right match for the structure and I will keep you posted with the progress of the transactions, site surveys and schedule.

Actually at the moment the keys of the hon-do (the main pavillion) are now in the hands of the Buddhist authority which is considering the application for the secularization of the building. The monk cannot let us inside in this phase, so the real estate agent passed me few more detailed pictures of the structure from the outside.

The temple name is Jo-Sho-ji.
Here below is the street view of the site.

https://www.google.co.jp/maps/@34.6815783,135.4487177,3a,75y,9.19h,83.11t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sb7s0eoASaHsImXUR1wCQoQ!2e0!7i13312!8i6656!6m1!1e1?hl=ja

Here below is a site plan showing the external dimensions (excluding the projection of the roof). The area highlighted in light blue is the hon-do (main hall)

SCHEDULE (tentative):

* 2015/11
Within the end of november I am planning to make a survey inside the building and ask a specialized company an estimate of the cost for dismantling the structure in such a way it can be rebuild without damage. I am planning to enquire Kongo-gumi which is specialized in the construction and maintenance of religious architecture since year 578 A.D. !!

As said earlier, the cost of the building itself, including the accessories is free of charge.
* 2015/12
Following, I will evaluate the cost of loading on containers, customs issues and shipping cost. I should be able to have clear data by the end of december.
* 2016/1
A couple of weeks should be enough to evaluate the feasibility of the project and the most suitable “foster family”.
* 2016/2
Time to carefully dismantle the structure as the D-day for the demolition is set for the end of the month.

Please refer to this blog for updates and additional details.

All the Best//

iacopo torrini