Luxury hotel and residences planned for Osaka

The first InterContinental hotel in Osaka and the first InterContinental residences in Japan are planned for the Osaka Station North Yard Development Project, a 24-hectare, mixed-use urban redevelopment area with projects by 12 different developers. The InterContinental complex, designed by Hong Kong-based Bilkey Llinas Design and the Japanese design firm Yukio Hashimoto Design Studio in a joint venture, will feature 200 luxury hotel rooms and 50 upscale residence units, along with restaurant and banquet facilities. Both the hotel and residences are expected to open in 2013.