Kyoto Animation Will Construct Two Memorials For Victims Of 2019 Arson Attack

This July will mark four years since an arson attack took the lives of 36 employees and injured another 32 working at Kyoto Animation’s Studio 1.

Today, the company outlined its plans to construct two memorials for the victims of that attack.

Back in 2019, studio president Kideaki Hatta first indicated that the company would like to construct a memorial on the site where Studio 1 once stood. However, his plans weren’t well received by the studio’s neighbors. Before the fire, Studio 1 was the largest building in a small, quiet suburb of Kyoto and many living nearby are concerned that a public memorial will create an influx of visitors which would drastically alter the area.

Now, rather than building on the former location of Studio 1, Kyoto Animation will place the first memorial near the company’s main headquarters in Uji City, just one train stop from where Studio 1 once stood.

The first memorial is planned to be finished by July 18, 2024, the fifth anniversary of the attack. Kyoto Animation has asked its employees to submit designs for the monument, which will be installed in an open park space at the company’s headquarters and easily accessible to those looking to pay their respects.

A second memorial site is planned for the space where Studio 1 used to sit, but it will be a private memorial housed inside a new Kyoto Animation building that will not be open to the public.