Advance Opening of GRAND GREEN OSAKA Scheduled for September 2024!

TOKYO, Japan - September 25, 2023 - The joint venture of nine companies (“JV9”)^*1 in charge of the GRAND GREEN OSAKA (“the project”), led by Mitsubishi Estate Co., Ltd., announced that, in cooperation with Osaka Prefecture, Osaka City, and Urban Renaissance Agency, it has decided on the date of the advance opening of the project to be September 2024, approximately one year later, and has also determined the scope of the advance opening. The project aims to facilitate the urban development goal of creating a “base for fusing ‘MIDORI (greenery)^*2 and ‘Innovation.’”^*3
JV9 has also established a logo for UMEKITA PARK (“the park”), which will be opened under the project.
The park will be located in front of JR Osaka Station and at approximately 4.5 hectares, will be one of the world's largest urban parks directly connected to a large-scale terminal station. On June 1 of this year, JV9 established the Umekita MMO General Incorporated Association, an organization that will manage the park and entire district in an integrated fashion.
JV9 will begin full-scale planning and attracting visitors to appealing events to be organized around the park’s event space with a large roof and grass plaza. In addition, based on the project’s values such as sustainability/SDGs and co-creation, JV9 will establish the MIDORI Partner Program, a system to jointly enhance the appeal of the town and corporate value, and will actively recruit participating companies.

Advance Opening Date and Scope
Of the entire GRAND GREEN OSAKA, UMEKITA PARK (all of the South Park and part of the North Park) and the lease buildings in the North District will open in advance in September 2024. The lease buildings in the South District are scheduled to open in the spring of 2025, and the section of the UMEKITA PARK (part of the North Park), developed in the second half of the project, is scheduled to open in the spring of 2027.

Logo for UMEKITA PARK

The logo is a combination of organic lines and sharp letters, representing UMEKITA PARK’s function as a public space filled with greenery for healing and innovation at the heart of the city. The two lines represent the initials “U” and “P” in a variety of green colors that symbolize the park. The “inspiration path” connecting the north and south sides of the park and the gentle curves of the landscaping and the facility with a large roof are also represented in the design, expressing the wish that the park will be loved by many people as a place where diverse people can gather and connect.

Direction of Liveliness Creation in UMEKITA PARK
■Large-scale events

• In the park, JV9 is exploring the idea of attracting visitors and hosting seasonal events that will allow visitors to enjoy experiences that cannot be found in daily life throughout the four seasons, mainly at the event space with a large roof and the grass plaza in South Park.
• JV9 has decided the worldview of the area it aims to pursue through its activities in the park to be “a place where good things for you and the world continue to happen,” and has defined 12 key elements for the project to provide visitors with "an emotional experience that will be etched on a page of their lives.”
• JV9 will continue to plan and attract visitors to appealing content that match these elements.

■Liveliness creation in our daily lives

・JV9 will plan the following projects for daily placemaking^*6 that will contribute to the well-being^*7 of residents, workers, and visitors to the area.

• Equipment rental: Renting furniture and playground equipment that can be used casually after work or during shopping breaks to enrich daily life in the heart of the city.
• Interactive programs: Inviting and hosting daily content that allows visitors to casually experience culture and art and also learn new things by taking advantage of the environment and space unique to a park located in the heart of the city.

MIDORI Partner Program (sponsorship program)

• JV9 is developing an approximately 8-hectare "Midori (greenery)" space centered around the park under a public-private partnership, and is pursuing a plan that takes into consideration sustainability/SDGs through measures such as acquiring environmental certifications.^*8 After the advance opening, Umekita MMO General Incorporated Association, an organization formed by JV9 for park management and area management, will collaborate with various partners to provide high-quality maintenance and management appropriate for a public space in front of a train station in one of the world's major cities, as well as various programs and events that contribute to improving the international competitiveness of the city.
• In order to ensure the sustainable implementation of these activities and to accomplish "creating a base for fusing ‘MIDORI (greenery)' and ‘Innovation,'” JV9 has established the “MIDORI Partner Program” for companies and organizations that share the sustainable values, plans, and the project’s “co-creation” philosophy to become a sponsor of this project.
• Under the concept of “Toward an area where co-creation of good things for the world takes place,” this program will work with participating companies and organizations to engage in, and carry out activities that address social issues on a global scale (such as the creation of a sustainable society and improvement of the quality of life of visitors), beyond simply pursuing for-profit activities.
• As the first group of partners, the following companies have already decided to participate in the project. JV9 continues to seek more partners for the advance opening, which will take place approximately one year from now.

[Partner companies that have decided to participate in the project]

Umekita MMO General Incorporated Association

• On June 1 of this year, JV9 established Umekita MMO General Incorporated Association (MMO), an organization that will comprehensively manage the park and the entire area^*9 of the project under the designated manager framework of the local municipality law, as an initiative for sustainable urban environment management for urban revitalization.
• MMO aims to realize the “Osaka MIDORI LIFE,” the concept behind the project, and to enhance the value of the entire Umekita area, including GRAND FRONT OSAKA, and will engage in the liveliness creation such as the events in the area as described in this news release, operation of the partner program, high-quality maintenance and management appropriate for the area in front of Osaka Station, high-quality landscape development, and the promotion activities for the area.

Annotation

*1 One member of JV9, Umekita Kaihatsu Tokutei Mokuteki Kaisha, is an SPC funded by Obayashi Corporation.
*2 An open space rich in greenery that anyone can easily access. The Umekita Second Zone green space enhances the dignity and appeal of the city and provides an opportunity to elevate Osaka to the level of an international city with a world-class urban space. This will concentrate capital and superior human resources from all over the world and generate creative and transformative change (innovation).
*3 Urban development policy formulated by the Osaka Station Area/Nakanoshima and Midosuji Area Urban Renaissance Emergency Development Council.
*4 Details of the advance opening area are subject to change based on subsequent deliberations. The surrounding roads and other facilities will be constructed and put into service in stages.
*5 Some of the park facilities' name is subject to change.
*6 The creation of a lively and comfortable space through a multifaceted study that includes not only design aspects but also its usage.
*7 Physical, mental, and social well-being
*8 In addition to the GOLD certification (certification for the planning) under the LEED-ND international environmental performance certification program, JV9 plans to obtain certification under several other environmental certification programs.
*9 MMO was notified that it is a candidate for the designated management body of the park by the City of Osaka as of September 21 of this year, in accordance with the procedures stipulated in Osaka City's ordinance on parks. MMO will proceed with the necessary procedures in order to obtain the designation as the designated manager from the Osaka City Council.

(Reference) Project Overview

■Plan Concept

Creation of “Osaka MIDORI LIFE”
~Combining “MIDORI” and “Innovation~

JV9 will transcend the paradigms of urban development to contribute to building a society where people accept the diversity of all nationalities, ages, genders and special needs, understand each other’s wisdom, and sense an improvement in the Quality of Life (QOL) for each individual. To do this, we will create an urban space brimming with vitality in harmony with MIDORI (greenery), facilities as starting point for innovation activities, and places, and structures where citizens and businesses can try out new activities, thereby delivering the energetic, creative life model “Osaka MIDORI LIFE” from Umekita to the Kansai region, and also around Japan and the world.

The contents of this release are subject to change based on future considerations or decisions.

Contact Information:
Investor Relations and Sustainability Department
ORIX Corporation
Tel: +81-3-3435-3121

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ORIX Corporation (TSE: 8591; NYSE: IX) is a financial services group which provides innovative products and services to its customers by constantly pursuing new businesses.
Established in 1964, from its start in the leasing business, ORIX has advanced into neighboring fields and at present has expanded into lending, investment, life insurance, banking, asset management, automobile related, real estate and environment and energy related businesses. Since entering Hong Kong in 1971, ORIX has spread its businesses globally by establishing locations in 28 countries and regions across the world.
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(As of March 31, 2023)

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