Developers begin cutting trees in a Tokyo park that environmentalists want to protect

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TOKYO (AP) — Workers began cutting trees Monday in central Tokyo's Jingu Gaien park district to make way for a development project, a flashpoint for more than a year between environmentalists and real estate interests.

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Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 28/10/2024 (684 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

TOKYO (AP) — Workers began cutting trees Monday in central Tokyo’s Jingu Gaien park district to make way for a development project, a flashpoint for more than a year between environmentalists and real estate interests.

Developers led by real-estate company Mitsui Fudosan have a 10-year, multi-billion-dollar plan to build three skyscrapers on the coveted land and to raze a historical baseball stadium, replacing it with a new stadium.

A small group of protesters gathered Monday. They object to the destruction of trees in a city that lacks green space and is seeing many parks handed over to commercial interests.

Mikiko Ishikawa, a university professor who protests against tree cutting stands right, as security guards stand in front of a gate of the Jingu Gaien park district of central Tokyo, Japan, where property developer Mitsui Fudosan begins cutting trees as part of the redevelopment of the area, Monday, Oct. 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Hiro Komae)
Mikiko Ishikawa, a university professor who protests against tree cutting stands right, as security guards stand in front of a gate of the Jingu Gaien park district of central Tokyo, Japan, where property developer Mitsui Fudosan begins cutting trees as part of the redevelopment of the area, Monday, Oct. 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Hiro Komae)

The plan is backed by Tokyo Gov. Yuiko Koike, who once was Japan’s environmental minister.

Protest leader Satoru Osawa, right, a Tokyo resident, speaks as environmentalists hold a rally near the Jingu Gaien park district of central Tokyo, Japan, as property developer Mitsui Fudosan begins cutting trees as part of the redevelopment of the area, Monday, Oct. 28, 2024. The banner reads,
Protest leader Satoru Osawa, right, a Tokyo resident, speaks as environmentalists hold a rally near the Jingu Gaien park district of central Tokyo, Japan, as property developer Mitsui Fudosan begins cutting trees as part of the redevelopment of the area, Monday, Oct. 28, 2024. The banner reads, "Please don't destroy our park."(AP Photo/Hiro Komae)
A worker, right, asks Mikiko Ishikawa, a university professor who protests against tree cutting, back to camera, to move out of a cordoned area in front of the Jingu Gaien park district of central Tokyo, Japan, where property developer Mitsui Fudosan begins cutting trees as part of the redevelopment work, Monday, Oct. 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Hiro Komae)
A worker, right, asks Mikiko Ishikawa, a university professor who protests against tree cutting, back to camera, to move out of a cordoned area in front of the Jingu Gaien park district of central Tokyo, Japan, where property developer Mitsui Fudosan begins cutting trees as part of the redevelopment work, Monday, Oct. 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Hiro Komae)

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Mikiko Ishikawa, a university professor who protests against tree cutting stands right, as security guards stand in front of a gate of the Jingu Gaien park district of central Tokyo, Japan, where property developer Mitsui Fudosan begins cutting trees as part of the redevelopment of the area, Monday, Oct. 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Hiro Komae)

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Developers led by real-estate company Mitsui Fudosan have a 10-year, multi-billion-dollar plan to build three skyscrapers on the coveted land and to raze a historical baseball stadium, replacing it with a new stadium.

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