Roopt has many appealing features, and one of them is "renovation." Makigumi Inc., which operates Roopt, specializes in renovating vacant homes, and Roopt is filled with the techniques Makigumi has cultivated.
When I explain the renovation ingenuity to visitors, many get excited, so I thought, "Why not turn it into an article and share it with more people!" So, I've written an article explaining Roopt's renovation. I hope you'll discover even more charm in Roopt Shiogama Kaigan-dori through the explanation by Makigumi PR's Hiratsuka. *Presented in an interview format by editor/writer Takashi Kakuda
Roopt Shiogama Kaigan-dori is a four-story share house located about 30 minutes by train or car from Sendai Station, and a 1-minute walk from Hon-Shiogama Station on the JR Senseki Line. The second floor has a common area and rooms for vacation rentals, while the third and fourth floors have a total of five private rooms (Rooms A-E) for share house residents. With bookshelves utilizing the stair steps, a tricolor painted ceiling, and tatami mats from the renovation embedded in the walls, it's a place where you can experience Shiogama's "artistic" atmosphere.
—First, please tell us about the overall theme!
Shiogama City, where Roopt Shiogama Kaigan-dori is located, is one of Miyagi's leading port towns and a city rich in history, with places like Shiogama Shrine. We've incorporated various elements throughout the property to allow residents to feel this atmosphere. Also, Roopt Shiogama Kaigan-dori has a theme of "renovation without waste," where we try to utilize as much of the scrap materials from the renovation process as possible instead of discarding them.
—That's a sustainable initiative.
Yes, it is. As I'll explain later, we've made some interesting uses, so please look forward to it.
Roopt Shiogama Kaigan-dori utilizes the 2nd to 4th floors of a four-story residence as a renovated share house. It's the triangular building you see immediately to your left when you exit Hon-Shiogama Station.
—As it says on the website, it really is right in front of the station.
Yes, it's a 1-minute walk! The proximity to the station becomes even more apparent once you enter the share house.
(Hiratsuka waving in front of the share house. Can you see her?)
It's a little hard to find, but if you walk left from the station, you'll see Uotami, and it's across from there. When you come for an event or a viewing, Uotami is a good landmark.
(View of the 1st floor. You go up the stairs to enter the share house.)
—We've finally entered the share house. The second floor is a community space, right?
That's right! The second floor is a shared living room with a kitchen, bath, and toilet. There's also a vacation rental room at the back of the living room, so residents can use it when they want to invite friends over.
—It's great that it can be used for just one night! Looking at the living room, I got an overall impression of "red." Is there any meaning behind this?
Shiogama Shrine is a 10-minute walk from here, and since the shrine's torii gate is red, we chose the color based on that motif. The red paint from the entrance to the vacation rental room is inspired by a shrine approach, and the joints (meji: joints used to fill gaps between materials) in the ceiling and floor are also the same red to create a sense of unity.
By the way, in architectural terms, it's called "mesukashi" (open joint), and this mesukashi method is usually applied to ceilings. The architect from Makigumi who was in charge of this share house ingeniously applied it to the floor as well.
—Visiting Shiogama Shrine would probably make the meaning of this ingenuity even clearer. Next is the kitchen, but the wall... what's going on?
We've pasted tatami mats and fusuma (sliding doors) on the wall, which you don't see very often, do you? This is one example of "renovation without waste." During the renovation process, we had tatami mats and fusuma that were going to be discarded. It felt wasteful to just throw them away, so we decided to use them for something and brought them to the kitchen on the second floor. By the way, which tatami mats and fusuma we used is a secret for later.
—By utilizing things instead of discarding them, you can create such an interesting space.
And one more thing. Don't you think the kitchen looks unusually rugged? Actually, it was originally a cupboard, and it was a top and bottom set with the counter table in the living room. We split it into two and installed a new sink, transforming it into a kitchen!
—They even renovate furniture, not just the house! Next is the vacation rental room.
This is a room for vacation rentals, and even non-residents can stay here. Trial stays and short trips are also very welcome.
—I was curious about the space on the left.
This was originally a closet. We removed the fusuma and the wooden middle shelf (the board that divides the storage into upper and lower sections) and put in a desk and sofa. If you look closely, you can still see the fusuma rails, so you can tell it used to be a closet.
—Indeed, in a share house or vacation rental, storage isn't as necessary, so removing it to expand the living space is a valid option. Please tell us briefly about the other parts of the second floor!
We've incorporated a "Japanese" aesthetic throughout the entire share house, not just on the second floor. The lights in the changing room and the use of rope in the washroom are examples of this. We put effort into these small details, so I hope visitors to the share house will look around thoroughly.
(Changing room light. Renovated to illuminate two spots from one power source.)
—Even just the second floor had so many highlights. Now for the private rooms, starting with the third floor please!
The third floor has three rooms: A, B, and C.
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