The Kailua community and employees of its

Don Quijote store have been tilting at windmills in their quest for answers about Target's plan to build a store there.

The retail and grocery chain confirmed in October it was focused on expanding to Don Quijote's 7-acre Hahani Street parcel in Kailua, for which the ground lease expires in 2022.

Target is under contract to buy the lease from Japan-based Don Quijote and is in due diligence, said Mitch D'Olier, president of landowner Kaneohe Ranch Co.

“;In a situation with a long-term ground lease, you have some control but not complete control,”; he said. Target has said it would abide by Kailua's 40-foot height limit, and “;my understanding is they won't build a parking structure.”; Should Target decide to move forward, the project would create “;a bucket-load of jobs,”; D'Olier said.

The ball is in Target's court, said Herbert Gushikuma, general manager of Don Quijote for Hawaii, saying he had no further information.

Target is “;continuing with our due diligence and our design,”; said spokesman Kyle Thompson. “;We expect to share the design with county officials within the next 60 to 90 days.”;

The company typically confirms plans for a store within a year of a planned opening, but no other details will be released for now, he said.

Don Quijote employees were told in October they would lose their jobs by August but were not told exactly when, or whether they would receive preference in hiring should Target take over, said an employee who asked not to be named.

The Kailua Neighborhood Board also wants answers. It has regularly listed the Don Quijote property as an agenda item “;just in case there is something to report,”; said Donna Wong, chairwoman of the board's Planning, Zoning and Environment Committee.

The board does not act on rumors and has not taken a position on Target's possible arrival, she said.

Wong added that she was disappointed that neither Target nor Don Quijote has come to a neighborhood board meeting “;to at least explain to us what's going on.”; Neither company is required to appear, but after Wong learned that Target had worked with the Kapolei Neighborhood Board before opening there, she said, “;I'm appalled, then.”;

“;The employees are uneasy, and there's real unease within the Kailua community without knowing, because it's a big change for our small town. The traffic impact is going to be immense. Our roads are only two lanes, and Target's a big draw,”; said Wong. Community members have expressed frustration over existing gridlock on Hahani Street, she said.

The impact on local business is also of great concern, Wong said, as several small businesses operate in a strip mall adjacent to Don Quijote and elsewhere on the property. They include Twogood Kayaks and Hawaii National Bank in the old Kailua Theater building.

Kapolei Neighborhood Board Chairwoman Maeda Timson spoke glowingly of Target and how it entered her community.

“;They worked with Campbell Estate, so they had been doing some (preliminary) work ... before they came to us,”; she said. She and her transportation committee chairman met with Target representatives “;for an hour and a half to talk about it because, you know, in Kapolei traffic is always the first thing.”;

Target later presented its plans to a full neighborhood board committee meeting, and “;everyone was really pleased and happy with them,”; Timson said. Since then Target “;has been a good corporate neighbor ... giving money into our community.”;

Meanwhile, back in Kailua, where the windmills are spinning, Wong's next committee meeting is Tuesday evening.