Tokyo Olympics: Houseowners in Olympic Village apartment complex file for damages over event's postponement

Tokyo: Two dozen owners of apartments due to be converted from the Olympic Village after the Tokyo Games filed a compensation request on Monday over the event’s postponement, their lawyer said. The buildings, designed to house more than 10,000 Olympic athletes and officials, will be transformed into thousands of luxury bayside condos after this summer’s Games. Around 900 of the units — some carrying a price tag of 170 million yen ($1.6 million) — were sold before Tokyo 2020 was pushed back to 2021 because of the coronavirus pandemic. A group of 24 owners is seeking damages from the developers of the complex for being forced to delay their move by at least a year. “Many of them also sold their old apartment to take out a loan for the new one,” lawyer Hironobu Todoroki told AFP. The buyers have requested arbitration from the Tokyo District Court — seeking compensation from 10 developers, including real estate firm Mitsui Fudosan, without setting a price. Todoroki said the buyers may bring the case to a formal trial if the companies decline to talk. “We have requested to hold talks but they said there was no need,” the lawyer said. Immediate comment from the developers was not available. The complex, which comprises more than 20 tower blocks along Tokyo Bay, also features schools, a playground and leisure facilities — including a pool and gym. Tokyo 2020 organisers and the IOC insist the Games will go ahead safely this summer, despite doubts over the event’s fate as the coronavirus pandemic continues to wreak global havoc.