Kakaako to get new condos

The luxury high-rise is the final piece of a decades-long project

STORY SUMMARY »

A Los Angeles developer is banking on location for the success of one more luxury high-rise condo in Kakaako.

K2 Investors LLC, an affiliate of Woodridge Capital, plans a 295-unit condo tower between the Koolani and Hawaiki Tower, in what would be the final stage of a development project approved by the state more than two decades ago.

The state Hawaii Community Development Authority approved a permit for a 17.25-acre project in 1984, which was to include five towers.

Developers expect to start construction of the fifth tower at the end of 2008.

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Another luxury high-rise condo is slated to rise in Kakaako, one that would complete the final phase of a development plan approved more than two decades ago.

Condo History Nauru Tower 1991 1133 Waimanu 1996 Hawaiki Tower 1999 Koolani 2006 K2 Project 2010 Source: HCDA, developers

K2 Investors LLC, an affiliate of Los Angeles-based Woodridge Capital, presented its proposal to the state earlier this month for a 295-unit luxury high-rise between the Koolani and Hawaiki Tower.

The new tower is planned to be just as tall as the Koolani, at 400 feet, but will also include a smaller, five-story building offering 64 one- and two-bedrooms at a more moderate price across the street.

Crescent Heights, developers of the adjacent Koolani, originally planned a mid-luxury tower at the 5.2-acre site, but earlier this year decided to sell it instead.

Dan Nishikawa, principal of K2 Investors, said the developer is confident that there will be plenty of demand for the project once it is completed. The liquidity crunch is not a concern, either.

"We don't think that's going to have an impact on the project," he said.

Woodridge Capital, headed by Michael Rosenfeld in Los Angeles, is a developer of large-scale residential, resort commercial and industrial projects throughout the western United States. It is also part of an investment group that is developing Honua'ula -- formerly known as Wailea 670 -- on Maui.

The newest high-rise condo proposed for Kakaako should blend in with other recently completed projects, such as the Hokua at 1288 Ala Moana Blvd. and Koolani. Amenities will include a fitness center, swimming pool, cabanas, walking paths, a business center and media screening room.

The development permit for the area was originally approved by the state Hawaii Community Development Authority in 1984 -- as the last phase in a project then called "404 Piikoi" that included five towers on 17.25 acres. Since then, the permit has been amended and modified several times.

As part of this latest permit agreement, K2 Investors has agreed to build a residential urban village with a mix of retail and 64 condos targeting "gap-group" buyers on a small, L-shaped parcel bound by Piikoi, Kona and Waimanu Streets.

K2 Investors will also give $2 million to HCDA for parks at Queen Street in exchange for about 57,000 square feet of additional floor area for the development.

Nishikawa expects to schedule another meeting with HCDA by the end of the year. A public hearing will also be scheduled once plans are finalized.

Construction is expected to begin at the end of 2008, with completion targeted for 2010.