Chelsea GCA Realty Inc., a real estate investment trust based in Roseland, N.J., said the $356-a-square foot price is the highest ever paid for an outlet center in the United States.

Waikele Factory Outlets is 100 percent leased with more than 60 tenants, including Anne Klein, Benetton, Bose, Carter's for Kids, Donna Karan and Off 5th-Saks Fifth Avenue Outlet.

The seller, WCC Associates, said it will retain ownership of the remaining 520,000-square-foot segment of Waikele Center, with such tenants as Borders Books & Music and Kmart.

The state Employees' Retirement System, which loaned WCC Associates $160 million to help finance Waikele Center's construction, will remain invested in the project, said Stanley Siu, administrator of the system.

Waikele Factory Outlets is one of the most productive outlet shopping centers in the country, generating more than $500 a square foot in sales, compared with the industry average of $213, according to Bloomberg News.

Chelsea now owns and operates 19 outlet centers containing about 3.8 million square feet of space. The company said it expects a return of 9 percent to 9.5 percent in the first year that it owns the Central Oahu property.

Officials at Chelsea said the company is looking at the possibility of buying and developing factory outlets in Pacific Rim countries, especially Japan. Factory outlet centers are virtually nonexistent in Asia.

"Being in Hawaii will help us to understand the Japanese shopper," said Leslie Chao, chief financial officer.

As a result of the sale, about 50 employees of Waikele Center are being laid off. The affected workers were Monroe & Friedlander employees working under a service contract with the center's management. The sale to Chelsea called for the cancelation of the contract.