They want to build a factory
and store that would showcase
ecologically sound products

By Jerry Tune
Star-Bulletin

A development group that includes muralist and art gallery owner Bill Wyland wants to create an Oahu attraction that would combine environmentalism with tourism and capitalism.

The venture, which uses Electric Islands as the working company name, is looking for 70,000 to 80,000 square feet of space near Waikiki to build what they call an "interactive tour factory." The facility would include all manner of energy-saving or ecologically minded consumer products, some of which would be made on the premises.

Of this space, 12,000 square feet would be for retail operations where the products would be sold, said Steve Conklin, one of the developers. The items will include electric-powered cars and bicycles, electrical appliances, solar equipment, clothing and other small products that fit the ecological theme, he said.

Tourists would be able to tour the factory for free, according to the preliminary plans.

"The time is right for this project and there is no better location than Hawaii," Wyland said.

People in Hawaii are extremely concerned about the environment, Wyland said, adding that the driving distances in Hawaii are generally short, making electric vehicles more viable.

"I started working on this with Bill Conklin (Steve's father and a developer in California) and we had the same vision," Wyland said.

That vision is still a ways off from becoming reality.

Zebra Motors photo
The developers of an ecological-products factory
and store on Oahu hope to make Zebra Motors' electric-
powered "Z roadster" a key attraction of the project.

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Steve Conklin, whose family operates the real estate development company CC of Sonoma Inc. in California, said Electric Islands hopes to have architectural plans ready by this summer and the plant and retail operation open by early 1999. The group has a leasing agent looking for space in Waikiki, he said.

It will cost $10 million to start the operation, including to improve an existing warehouse and build up inventory, he said. Conklin, who works out of an office at Restaurant Row, said the partners are still working on financing.

The developers hope one of the top draws will be the Zebra Motors Inc. "Z roadster." The electric-powered sports car would be sold for less than $22,000, Conklin said, adding that he also wants to rent it out to tourists.

The first Zebra sports cars would be brought in fully developed, but ultimately he wants to have them assembled in Hawaii.

Zebra Motors operates a plant out of the former Alameda Naval Air Station in California. The company says it has spent $4 million on research, development and construction of the sports car. The two-seat convertible has a range of 60 to 125 miles between battery charges, and top speed of 80 miles per hour, according to the company.

Conklin also plans to use electric buses to bring tourists from Waikiki to the one-stop environmental factory outlet.

Wyland, known for his marine-life murals, owns 42 art galleries in the United States as well as other businesses including retail stores. He raised the possibility of joint promotions with department stores for some of the products from the factory, such as electrical appliances and bird houses.

Tours through the plant will be much like what automakers do in Detroit and Hershey Foods Corp. does at its chocolate factory in Pennsylvania, he said.

"In Hawaii this will be more of an assembly plant than a manufacturing plant," he said.