Edward Tachibana

Principal, Director of Asia Operations

Edward Tachibana is a Principal at Handel Architects with over thirty years of experience with projects in the United States, Europe, South America and Asia. He has been with Handel Architects since its founding in 1994. From the New York City office, Mr. Tachibana was responsible for the design and development of many of the firm’s mixed-use, commercial, and entertainment-based projects, including the Four Seasons Hotel & Residences in Miami, a 1.8 million sq. ft. mixed-use project clad in a glass and metal skin. In 2009, he relocated to Hong Kong to open the firm’s first office in Asia and to oversee all Handel Architects projects in the region.

Mr. Tachibana recently completed the design for the first mixed-use Westin Sonata Place in Southeast Asia; the project is currently under construction. He also led the design of the 2.4 million sq. ft. mixed-use master plan for Shangri-La in Colombo, Sri Lanka, which was awarded “Best Mixed Use Development” by Asia Property Awards; he also led the design of the 600-key flagship hotel and meeting facility. Mr. Tachibana has also designed mixed-use projects for Shangri-La in Hong Kong, Dalian, and a 2 million sq. ft. flagship Shangri-La in Manila which opened in early 2017 and was a winner of this year’s MIPIM “Best Hotel and Tourism Development.” Other work in Manila includes a landmark mixed-use project for Ayala Land that includes the new Philippine Stock Exchange, a 580-unit luxury residential tower, and a 200,000 sq. ft. lifestyle mall.

Mr. Tachibana was involved in the rezoning and reuse of the High Line in New York City, and alongside Gary Handel he represents Handel Architects as an active member of Friends of the High Line. Mr. Tachibana was Lead Designer and Project Manager for The Caledonia, a 550,000 sq. ft. mixed-use building adjacent to the High Line, the first built in the new zoning district.

Prior to joining Handel Architects, Mr. Tachibana worked for Kohn Pedersen Fox, where he was involved in the design of projects in the US and overseas, most notably the Rockefeller Plaza West in New York City, Costanera Center in Santiago, Chile, Japan’s Nagoya Station Building, Telecom Buenos Aires, Berlin’s Sony Center, and the Revlon Campus Center in Philadelphia.