Metropoly Holdings has announced a refreshed masterplan for Aruku-zaka Street in Hirafu, with an updated layout intended to reduce density while retaining the project’s original retail and residential vision.
Metropoly Holdings has announced a refreshed masterplan for Aruku-zaka Street, the long-planned mixed-use development in central Hirafu.
In a press release dated 17 July 2026, the Hong Kong-based developer said the updated layout is intended to retain Aruku-zaka Street’s original vision of becoming the “retail and residential heart of Niseko”, while decreasing density and responding to changes in the local and wider property market.
The project has been one of Hirafu’s most closely watched development sites for several years. The original plan was drawn up before the Covid-19 pandemic, at a time when both market conditions and community expectations were different. Metropoly said its decision to refresh the masterplan followed a thorough post-pandemic review of the project. According to the company, that review has taken into account updated building regulations introduced in Niseko in 2023, as well as the post-Covid boom in Japan’s real estate market and the new pressures that have emerged in the construction industry.
Metropoly said it has also been carrying out research into tourism patterns, changes in the property market and the needs of the local community. The company described Aruku-zaka Street as a large-scale project “set to define central Hirafu”, making the updated approach particularly important for the future shape of the village.
As part of the review, Metropoly engaged Nikken Sekkei in spring 2024 to prepare an updated Concept Design Report. That work was completed in autumn 2025. The developer said the refreshed plan retains the original vision for Aruku-zaka Street, while ensuring that the updated layout responds positively to the new conditions facing the project.
Further details of the updated layout have not yet been released. Metropoly said its project team is now working to bring the revised design forward, and that more information on the updated layout and next stages will be shared with the wider community when the refreshed masterplan is formally launched.
The announcement follows renewed interest in the future of the project after several years of delay. Aruku-zaka Street has long been seen as a potentially important piece of central Hirafu’s future commercial and residential infrastructure, with the wider concept built around retail, accommodation and public-facing spaces designed to strengthen the village centre.
For now, the key point is that the project appears to be moving into a new phase rather than simply reviving its earlier plan unchanged. The revised masterplan suggests a more measured approach, with lower density and a greater emphasis on responding to current market, regulatory and community conditions.
Source
Metropoly Holdings press release, 17 July 2026.