The Premier International Club in Asia
FAQs
Takanawa
Questions
1. What facilities does the Club at Takanawa offer?
2. Do we have the restaurants we currently enjoy?
3. What is in the Takanawa area?
4. Am I allowed to opt out of Membership during this period?
6. How did we find this property?
7. What happens to the site after the Club returns to Azabudai?
8. Will dues be reduced in compensation for the closure of the Club during the move?
9. What offsite facilities has the Club arranged for fitness?
Answers
1. What facilities does the Club at Takanawa offer?
The Club at Takanawa provides the full range of services Members have come to expect, in addition to some new benefits. Key features include a Day Spa, a new dedicated teen space, a Kids’ Zone and a Traders’ Bar with a dedicated kitchen for faster service. Takanawa also has a single-depth pool with a wooden deck, ideal for families and providing a country feel amid the trees of Takanawa.
The facility continues to serve the needs of the Membership with space for the Women’s Group and a dedicated room for bridge and mahjongg. The everyday support services Members have come to rely on at Azabudai will also come online, from the Beauty Salon and express delivery service to shoe repair and an ATM.
In addition, the greenery of Takanawa offers the chance for enhanced outdoor activities and extensive on and off site parking plus shuttle bus service to ensure convenience.
2. Do we have the restaurants we currently enjoy?
Yes, the full range of both the family and adult dining venues that Members have come to expect have been incorporated into the temporary Takanawa Club. New menus are in development and are sure to be a hit – these new options will be introduced at the Azabudai Club in October, to provide an initial taste of things to come at Takanawa.
The incorporation at Takanawa of aspects of the décor from the previous Azabudai Club also creates a feeling of comfort and familiarity, while fresh interior design highlights the unique qualities of our temporary home.
3. What is in the Takanawa area?
The Takanawa site is just 15 minutes from Azabudai by car and within easy walking distance of the extensive transportation and shopping facilities of Shinagawa station. Home to nine embassies and some of Japan’s top companies, Shinagawa also plays host to a range of attractions, offering Members culture, entertainment, shopping and more.
Hara Bijutsukan is Japan's oldest museum of contemporary art and Sengaku-ji, the famous temple honoring the 47 ronin, offers distractions distinctly Japanese. The Shinagawa Prince Hotel meanwhile presents the Shinagawa Prince Cinema (a 10-screen multiplex), an 80-lane Bowling Center and the Takanawa Golf Center, with 14 practice boxes. Finally, Aqua Stadium features dolphin shows, a variety of rides, a concert hall and even a walk-in aquarium.
Shinagawa also presents a variety of convenient shopping highlights, including New York delicatessen Dean & Deluca, the Atre department store, Queen’s Isetan, which is an offshoot of the upscale Isetan department store, and a wide variety of restaurants, including Western and other foreign fare.
Please see In the Area in the Takanawa section of this website for further detail on what to expect from Shinagawa.
4. Am I allowed to opt out of Membership during this period?
We hope that all Members consider the long-term interests of the Club. We believe it would be neither feasible nor fair to have some Members stop paying their share at this critical time in our development and to then want to return to enjoy the vastly improved facility we are all working hard on creating.
5. Why are we moving?
The Club’s permanent home remains at Azabudai. However, our operational and financial analysis, supported by advice from our experts, clearly shows that it is in the best interests of the Club and Members to move to a temporary off-site facility at Takanawa for 33 months while the Club redevelops the Azabudai site.
6. How did we find this property?
One of the primary considerations in selection of a suitable development partner was finding a candidate who can provide a potential location for a temporary Club while construction takes place at Azabudai.
After exhaustive due diligence review of 16 potential developers, the LRPC unanimously recommended the TMT consortium to the board because of the excellent reputations that each of the consortium members enjoys in Japan and because TMT offered access to this prime location at Takanawa as a temporary offsite during construction.
7. What happens to the site after the Club returns to Azabudai?
Under the agreement with Mitsubishi, the owners of the site, the temporary structure will be dismantled. It is up to the Mitsubishi group to determine future uses but the site will not be turned into a permanent competing Club.
8. Will dues be reduced in compensation for the closure of the Club during the move?
This issue was raised earlier and after due consideration your fellow members on the Board of Governors decided against any reduction in dues because of the move to Takanawa. As with virtually all member-owned private clubs, our revenues depend almost entirely on income from the Members, and any reduction in dues would need to be financed either through higher revenues elsewhere or a reduction in services.
In managing the move to Takanawa, Club management is committed to minimizing any inconvenience to the Membership. Consistent with this commitment, the move is deliberately being carried out during the holiday period, when many Members are away from Japan and unable to use Club facilities.
9. What offsite facilities has the Club arranged for fitness?
The Club has arranged for Member use of the full-service Tipness gym, centrally located in Roppongi Hills. Members can purchase a coupon at the Club recreation desk at a price of 3,000 yen each; no initiation fees or monthly dues are necessary. This facility will be available to Members both during the period of the move and for the duration of our time at the Club at Takanawa.