Yokohama Station Building will open the commercial facility "CIAL Sakuragicho" at Sakuragicho Station on the JR Negishi Line on July 16th. The concept is "Yokohama Nostalgic Revue." A preview was held on the 14th.
The JR East Group has been working on renovations to Sakuragicho Station on the Negishi Line to improve station convenience. The "North Gate" on the Yokohama side, which opened on July 1st, allows access to the Minato Mirai area even on rainy days, and the new "East-West Passage" outside the North Gate will be fully opened on the 16th. The opening of CIAL Sakuragicho on the same day, along with the station plaza being developed by Yokohama City, will contribute to creating a lively atmosphere around the station, improving "accessibility between the station and the city."
CIAL Sakuragicho will have a retail floor space of approximately 4,000 square meters and will be composed of four zones surrounding the station's ticket gates. Yokohama Bazaar, adjacent to the station square, has a modern, all-white exterior, showcasing the freshness of Yokohama as a port city. Its lineup includes a general goods store, cafe, and juice stand. Starbucks, facing the square, has a retro railway-themed interior, with specially designed fixtures and other items different from other stores. Kitamura, an original bag brand from Yokohama Motomachi, will be offering embroidered handkerchiefs (priced from 1,500 to 2,000 yen) to coincide with the opening, and is also accepting advance orders for men's bags. On the 16th, entertainer Junji Takada, who designs for Kitamura, will be visiting for a talk show to commemorate the opening.
Teishaba Buffet on the Noge side is a stark contrast, with a retro brick exterior that evokes Yokohama's history. The mall will house a variety of restaurants, primarily from local businesses, including Chongqing Tea House, a new venture from the long-established Chinatown restaurant Chongqing Chinese Restaurant, with a cafe-like interior that even women can drop in to alone. The Momijizaka Gallery, adjacent to the east-west passage, will offer Chongqing Chinese Restaurant GIFT & DELI, a new venture offering prepared foods for the first time, as well as Yokohama's long-established Japanese and Western confectionery store Ariake and Chinese prepared food store Kiyoken. The mall aims to be a shopping center that can be visited daily by people on their way home from work and local residents. The Yokohama Information Plaza in front of the south ticket gates will cater to a wide range of traveler needs, with a tourist information center, luggage storage, delivery services, Yokohama souvenirs, a convenience store, and a bookstore. The concourse will feature a small gallery displaying exhibits on railway culture, its background, and its story. It's designed to be a fun place to spend time waiting for someone.
Mr. Arai Minoru, President and CEO of Yokohama Station Building, said, "Sakuragicho is now one of the leading tourist destinations in Japan. We have tried new things, such as setting up a cloakroom service so that visitors can enjoy walking around empty-handed. Charl Sakuragicho's commitment is to blend the 'Yokohama' that retains the old atmosphere that originated in Noge with the new 'YOKOHAMA' that is imagined from Minato Mirai. We hope to attract a wide range of people, from weekend tourists to weekday businessmen and local residents. We would like to revitalize the surrounding area by linking it with events held in the plaza in front of the station."
