Akarenga soko
- Built: 1911-1913
- Other Names: 新港埠頭保税倉庫 (shinkou futou hozei souko), lit. Newport Pier Tax Keeping Warehouse
- Japanese: 赤レンガ倉庫 (akarenga souko)
Akarenga sôko, lit. "red brick warehouses," is a shopping and event complex in Yokohama converted from a pair of Meiji/Taishô era red brick warehouses, associated originally with the port of Yokohama.
The two warehouses were completed in, respectively, 1911 (one year before the end of Meiji) and 1913 (Taishô 2). They were used as customs houses for only about ten years before the 1923 Great Kanto Earthquake struck the region. Repairs lasted into the 1930s.
The structures were requisitioned for use by the Occupation forces after WWII, and were returned to Japanese control in 1956. They continued to be used as customs houses until 1989, and were reopened as a shopping center and cultural center in 2002. It is today a popular tourist attraction, and the site for numerous events, including ice skating and Oktoberfest.
References
- Plaques on-site.
