Consulate-General of Japan, Atlanta


The Consulate-General of Japan, Atlanta is a diplomatic mission of Japan. It is located in the Buckhead area of Atlanta. The consulate's jurisdiction includes Georgia, Alabama, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Virginia.

History

The consulate was established on February 15, 1974. At the time, 20 Japanese companies had operations in the Southeastern United States. In 1995 Yuji Miyamoto, the consul general, said that economic relations between Japan and Georgia and other economic states and "grassroots relationships" between those areas were increasing. That year, 200 unionists from several states in the Southern United States protested at Colony Square, the location of the consulate at the time, in Midtown Atlanta. They went to deliver a letter of appeal to the consulate regarding the replacement of over 2,000 Bridgestone/Firestone workers who were striking. Security officers from the complex intervened.
In 2002 the consulate announced it was moving from Colony Square to One Alliance Center. It had signed a ten-year lease there for fewer than of space. The consulate had over three years left in the lease of Colony Square. Because TrizecHahn Office Properties Inc. owned both office properties, the consulate was easily able to move to its new location. In 2005 there were almost 700 Japanese companies with operations in the Southeastern United States, employing over 89,500 people. The cumulative Japanese investment was over $20 billion that year. In 2005 almost 20,000 Japanese nationals resided in that region, including 6,600 in the State of Georgia.

Facility

It is located in Suite 850 of the Phipps Tower in the Buckhead area of Atlanta. Previously the consulate was in Suite 1600 on the 16th floor of the One Alliance Center in Buckhead, and the consul general's office had a northward panoramic view of the Kennesaw Mountain. In 2005 the consul general's mansion was also in Buckhead. In a prior period the consulate was in Colony Square in Midtown Atlanta.