A Tokyo-based company is planning a new residential development in Kutchan, with multiple apartment buildings proposed as the town continues to face a chronic housing shortage.
A new residential development is being planned in Kutchan, as pressure continues to build around housing supply in one of Hokkaido’s fastest-changing resort towns.
According to the report, Tokyo-based Strait P GK is preparing a plan to develop around 17,000 square metres of land in the Yahata area of Kutchan, creating eight residential lots. The site is expected to be used for multiple apartment buildings as well as a management building, with land preparation works scheduled for completion by the end of October 2027.
The planned site sits along Route 276, close to the JA Yotei Kutchan Yahata sorting facility, around 3 kilometres east of JR Kutchan Station and roughly 8 kilometres from Hirafu, where many of the town’s resort facilities and accommodation are concentrated.
The development is being positioned as part of the response to Kutchan’s worsening housing shortage. The town has seen chronic strain on housing supply in recent years, driven in part by the increase in foreign employees working across local resorts and tourism businesses. Preparation works could begin as early as April 2027, with several apartment buildings to be constructed after the land is developed.
A local residents’ briefing session is scheduled for 19 June at the Kutchan Small And Medium Enterprise Centre.
The project also sits within a wider pattern now visible in Kutchan, where housing for workers and longer-term residents is becoming a more urgent issue as the resort economy continues to expand. Another large-scale apartment project intended to house up to 1,200 foreign workers is already under way in the town.