From Abandoned Building to Artistic Landmark, The Revival of Oya Grand Center

Set into the mountainside in the heart of the former Ōya stone quarries in Tochigi Prefecture, this imposing two-storey reinforced concrete structure was once one of Japan’s most iconic abandoned sites. Opened in 1967 as the Yamamotoen Oya Grand Center, it housed hot spring facilities as well as reception and banquet halls, contributing to the prosperity of a town that flourished through the extraction of Ōya stone.

However, as the tourism industry declined, the complex closed its doors in 1986. Left abandoned for several decades, it gradually became a nationally renowned destination among urban explorers. Around ten years ago, a major regeneration project was launched, and this year the building has finally revealed its new identity as a hybrid space devoted to art and gastronomy.

‘We sought to preserve the unique character of this architecture, which appears to be embedded within the mountain, while selectively removing parts of the walls and floors to allow light and air to enter. Our aim was to create a building that feels like a natural extension of the Ōya landscape,’ explains architect Masafumi Harigai, who led the project.

Once dark and entirely enclosed, the ground floor has been stripped back to reveal the building’s raw structure and transformed into an exhibition gallery. Sections of the walls were removed to expose the natural rock face, while slit-like openings were created between the stone and the concrete framework, allowing light and air to flow through the space. The rugged cliffs, reinforced concrete structure and newly introduced elements in steel and mortar now intersect in a composition where different layers of time coexist.

The former banquet hall on the second floor has been renovated into a restaurant and café connected to a panoramic terrace. Sections of the existing continuous horizontal windows were removed to create greater variation within the space, while the openings facing the terrace were extended up to the underside of the beams. This new configuration draws the vast rock walls and quarry landscapes into the interior, transforming the building into a place where visitors can experience the very topography of Ōya.

By combining the preservation of traces from the past with contemporary interventions, Oya Grand Center has emerged as a new cultural landmark, carrying forward the memory of a town shaped by centuries of stone extraction.

Architect

Founded in 2014 by Masafumi Harigai after completing his master’s degree at Yokohama National University and gaining experience at Kengo Kuma & Associates, Masafumi Harigai Architecture works across a wide range of projects, including private residences, commercial spaces and public facilities. The firm received a Good Design Award for the TSUKI hotel in Tokyo’s Tsukiji district.