Roopt has many appealing features, and one of them is "renovation." Makigumi Inc., which operates Roopt, specializes in renovating vacant houses, and Roopt is filled with the techniques that Makigumi has cultivated.
When we explain the renovation ingenuity to prospective tenants, many people get excited, so we thought, "Let's put it in an article and share it with more people!" So, we've written an article explaining Roopt's renovation. We hope you'll discover even more charm in Roopt Shiogama Kaigan-dori through the explanation by Makigumi's PR representative, Hiratsuka. *Presented in an interview format by editor/writer Takashi Tsunoda
Roopt Shiogama Kaigan-dori is a 4-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 2nd floor has a common space and rooms for vacation rentals, and the 3rd and 4th floors have a total of 5 private rooms (Rooms A-E) for share house residents. With bookshelves that utilize the steps of the staircase, a tricolor ceiling, and tatami mats that were waste materials 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 features throughout the property to allow residents to experience this. Also, Roopt Shiogama Kaigan-dori has a theme of "renovation without waste," where we try to utilize as much as possible of the scrap materials generated during the renovation process 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 4-story house as a 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! You'll realize how close it is to the station even more once you step inside 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 that. When you come for an event or a viewing, Uotami is a good landmark.
(The first 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 you can stay 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 decided on the color based on that. The red paint from the entrance to the vacation rental room is inspired by a sando (approach to a shrine), and the joints in the ceiling and floor are also the same red to create a sense of unity.
By the way, in architectural terms, this is called "mesukashi" (recessed joint), but this mesukashi method is usually applied to ceilings. The architect from Makigumi who was in charge of this share house ingeniously incorporated it into the floor as well.
—Visiting Shiogama Shrine would make the meaning of this ingenuity even clearer. Next is the kitchen, but the wall is... what's going on?
We've pasted tatami mats and fusuma (sliding doors) on the wall, which you don't see very often. 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 seemed a waste to just throw them away, so we decided to use them in the kitchen on the second floor. By the way, where the tatami mats and fusuma came from 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!
—You even renovate furniture, not just houses! Next is the vacation rental room.
This is a room for vacation rentals, and you can stay here even if you're not a resident. We welcome trial stays and short trips.
—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 see the fusuma rails, so you can tell it used to be a closet.
—Indeed, for a share house or vacation rental, storage isn't as necessary, so removing it to expand the living space is a good idea. Please tell me briefly about the other parts of the second floor!
We've incorporated a "Japanese" taste throughout the entire share house, not just on the second floor, and the lights in the changing room and the rope in the washroom are examples of this. We put a lot of effort into these small details, so we hope that people who visit the share house will look around thoroughly.
(Changing room light. Renovated to illuminate two spots with one power source.)
—The second floor alone 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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