Exterior facade of Karakida Community Center in Tama, Tokyo

为千秋市

Considerate of the history of the location, which used to be a small hill where children played, Chiaki Arai Urban & Architecture Design have built the community center on a sloping site...

... and an undulating grass roof acts like a palimpsest of its former incarnation

An aerial view of the community center and the grass roof

The exterior of the building's welcoming, almost anthropomorphic look

The indoor basketball court

Chiaki Arai's new building displays a virtuoso control of the medium of concrete, which he imbues with an unexpected warmth

The interiors have been deliberately kept simple and spacious...

... thanks to tubular steel columns and an elegant combination of glass, wood and patterned concrete

A closer look at the community center's delicately patterned concrete walls

Arai's sketches for Karakida Community Center

The western end of the structure - which accommodates a community hall and library - is on two floors, while the eastern part, which houses a children's centre, is single storey