Cafes, shops, parks
at Kakaako makai

Plans move forward for a view corridor
and urban village for the area

By Trish Moore
Star-Bulletin

Imagine a wide, tree-lined boulevard pleasant for walking with cafes, green open spaces, retail shops -- right through the heart of the Kakaako makai district.

Imagine strolling down a waterfront promenade at Kewalo Basin, buying seafood at open-air markets and visiting a world-class aquarium.

That's the vision state planners have for the prime waterfront property south of Ala Moana Boulevard, which for many years has been largely a wasteland of warehouses and base yards.

The dreams, five to 10 years away, are beginning to take shape. Construction has begun on the $36.3 million six-acre parks project intended to provide a "view corridor" and "gateway" from Ala Moana to Kakaako Waterfront Park.

Bishop Estate, which owns 10 to 12 acres in the waterfront district, recently announced plans to build a $50 million shopping complex on land currently occupied by Honolulu Ford.

It's part of the estate's long-range plan to develop a $2 billion "urban village" in the area.

Interest from private developers has been spurred by current construction and support from the governor and the Legislature, which has approved funding for infrastructure improvements.

"Every day I look out and things are changing," said Jan Yokota, director of the Hawaii Community Development Authority, the state agency that's guiding the development of Kakaako.

The state has been looking to develop the Kakaako makai area for the last 10 years.

Some area tenants are taking a wait-and-see approach about their future.

"I think everyone well understands they'll have to get out sometime," said Frank Goto, manager at United Fishing Agency at Kewalo Basin. "But you keep hearing about the economic condition -- no money. If no money, then no development."

Honolulu Ford President David Chun said he's made no specific plans to move, but "if the development goes like they want, I'd say they won't want us here.

"My only concern is where do I go after this? It's gotten so you can't afford anything."

The state is banking on the development of the 200 or so acres it owns in the area to be a cultural asset for residents and also generate revenue, Yokota said.

"The governor has really embraced the area," she said.

"He feels this is a jewel, a real special area."

The developing authority hopes to finalize long-range development plans for the district by next year.

The authority also was given $1 million by the Legislature to create a development strategy and to study whether a world-class aquarium would be economical.

Yokota envisions the area as a "diverse space where folks can live, work, play and shop all in one area."

Yokota hopes such an atmosphere would stimulate creative people and help Honolulu become a magnet for high-tech industry such as software development companies.

New buildings in the area will include fiber optics wired in.

Projects on the drawing board include:

Makai Gateway, a $6.7 million six-acre park and widening of Cooke Street. Completion date is February 1998.

The $14 million Children's Discovery Center, refurbished from a defunct city incinerator. The center should open in August 1998.

The 97-year-old pump and sewage station on Ala Moana and Keawe Street will be transformed into a combination restaurant, microbrewery, deli and 4,000-square-foot open-air market. Completion is expected in October 1998.

A 26-theater movie complex is planned on a Bishop Estate parcel on Ilalo Street, behind the Bank of America building. The project should be completed by December 1998.

The Legislature approved $36.3 million for improvements and widening of Ilalo Street and connecting it with Ward Avenue and Punchbowl and South streets. The project will be completed in December 2000.