Mycal Otaru, a 60 billion yen commercial complex comprising around 90 stores, looks like a giant ship anchored in this port.
Despite being the biggest commercial facility of its kind in Hokkaido, however, its future is in jeopardy.
Its managing company applied for protection from creditors under the Civil Rehabilitation Law at the end of September.
The move came amid a prolonged domestic slump that has pushed the nation's unemployment rate up above 5 percent, the highest rate since World War II.