The primary tenant is Patagonia, whose store will occupy the majority of the ground floor, with their office space on the second floor. Aside from Patagonia, there will be space available for one other nature-oriented boutique on the first floor. The third floor will feature an organic caf・by Tooth Tooth with open terrace seating overlooking the street. The fourth floor will be used as the managerﾕs office, while the fifth floor will house a loft style residence, connecting to a rooftop garden and multi-purpose room on the sixth floor.

The Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake of January 17, 1995 was a destructive one that damaged many buildings and much infrastructure in and around the city. Since then, in memory of this disastrous earthquake, Kobe has sponsored a festival of light, better known as ﾒLuminarieﾓ, as mentioned earlier. During the two weeks that Luminaire runs, between five and six million people come from nationwide for this event. The main feature of arches of light is located on the street of Nakamachi-dori, where we are located. Being so centrally located, in the heart of Kobe, we would like to serve as a landmark of eco-friendliness. Our hope for Dyre 108 is to set the standard for the future construction of other ﾒgreenﾓ buildings in Kobe City as a disaster prevention measure, as prescribed in our concept statement. The building is expected to be completed by December 1, 2003 in time for the 8th Annual Luminarie event.

We are constantly revising our concept to come as close as we can to an ecological one. We are currently working as hard as possible to understand more about environmental building methods through research and meeting with various professionals who specialize in this type of building. We are consulting with the Department of Ecological Architecture of Kobe City, Kobe Urban Design Office, Kobe Design University, NOB Design Office, Kansai Electric Company, and ZERI <http://www.zeri.org/> for advice and information that can be provided to us for the identity of Dyre 108 and for us to reach our goal of building an influential ecological building.

Conceptualized by: THE DYRE FAMILY 26/05/03

Ecological Architectural Construction
We began doing research for what it would take to build in an eco-friendly manner in tune with our design concept. With Patagoniaﾕs help, we have sought out the help of professionals who could help us to build with these ideas in mind:

Material
We are trying to incorporate as much ecological material as possible with earthy textures for a natural feel. We also have the cooperation of local linen and rubber manufacturers to provide us with recycled interior decorating materials.

Energy
Because we have both the south side and west side of the block, we have designed for the building to get the maximum amount of natural sunlight, as well as providing an open terrace space for air flow and circulation. We are currently exploring the idea of incorporating an underground pipe and chimney system that would allow for a natural ventilation system to reduce energy consumption.

Integration
A building that will compliment the historic street (conforming to Kobe Cityﾕs regulations), of an ecologically sound design and building technique.

Urbanization
To preserve the feeling of the Old Kobe Settlement area, the building will be the minimum height regulation, as we do not want it to be a high-rise, as many of the contemporary buildings in Kobe have been built since after the earthquake.

Renovation
Our thought is to preserve and use most of the rocks and trees from the old Japanese style garden already on the property that have been there for over half a century. The mother-of-pearl shell wall from the old building will also be salvaged to decorate the entranceway. Also, Old Kobe Settlement maps printed in 1960 will be displayed. Other antique and sentimental pieces from the old building, such as the door of a very old safe will be put aside to be reused, as well.