For more than 90 years, the European-style Harajuku Station building has been part of the Tokyo urban landscape — bearing witness to the Great Tokyo Air Raid during World War II, the 1964 Tokyo Olympics and the district's rise as a mecca of Japanese youth culture.

Despite calls to retain the historic Shibuya Ward landmark, cherished by visitors and locals alike, East Japan Railway Co. announced last month it will build a new station building in time for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and the extra visitors expected ahead of the event.

JR East said it will build the new station adjacent to the current building with no plans yet on what it will do with the existing station structure.