Castle & Cooke to develop resort in owner's home city

Castle & Cooke Inc. plans to develop a hotel and spa complex on 20 acres of land in Westlake Village, Calif., home of the company's owner and chairman, David H. Murdock.

The Westlake Village City Council earlier this week approved the project, which will consist of a six-story building, 285 guest rooms and suites, a spa, nutrition and "lifestyle" center, and a two-story parking garage.

Construction will start in the fall and the project should be completed in early 2004, Castle & Cooke said. In Hawaii, the company owns almost all of the island of Lanai and its two luxury resort hotels. It developed Mililani Town and has a variety of investments on the mainland.

Building Industry group extends entry deadline

The Building Industry Association of Hawaii has extended to May 31 the deadline for entries in its 17th annual Renaissance Building and Remodeling Awards. The awards program recognizes excellence in quality construction and design of new residential, commercial and landscape projects. This year it added a new category, kitchen and bath, to recognize that growing segment of the home improvement market.

A jury of remodeling professionals will select the winners who will be honored July 26 at the Royal Hawaiian Hotel.

Entry forms are available at BIA-Hawaii, 847-4666 or e-mail bia@bia-hawaii.com.

Japan Air blames Sept. 11 for drop in passengers

TOKYO >> Japan Airlines Co. lost $285 million in the past fiscal year as the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks sent air travel plunging.

International passenger traffic slid for Hawaii as well as the mainland United States but held steady on routes to Europe, South Korea and China, the airline said.

The Tokyo carrier yesterday reported a group net loss of &YEN36.7 billion for the fiscal year ended in March compared with a profit of &YEN41 billion ($311 million) the previous fiscal year. The loss was smaller than the airline's earlier forecast of a loss of 40 billion yen.

Sales fell 6 percent to &YEN1.6 trillion ($12 billion) from &YEN1.7 trillion a year earlier.

The airline said its passenger business had been doing fine until the terrorist attacks, which caused a nearly 12 percent drop in international passengers compared with a year ago. The number of international passengers totaled 13.37 million, down from 15.14 million a year ago.

JAL estimated the sales loss linked to the attack at &YEN110 billion ($855 million). In response, the company trimmed expenses by reducing flights on international routes and other cost-cutting efforts, it said. Flight capacity reduction saved &YEN20 billion ($156 million), JAL said.

Struggling Gap may close 100 additional stores

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. >> Gap Inc., which has been struggling for months with declining sales, said it will strengthen its leadership, focus on the items that made it famous -- khaki and denim -- and possibly close about 100 more stores in an effort to rebound.

On Thursday, the San Francisco-based chain announced another steep monthly sales decline, though the results weren't as bad as Wall Street analysts expected. Gap's same-store sales -- sales at stores open at least a year -- were down 24 percent in April. Wall Street analysts had anticipated an even sharper drop of 30.2 percent.

Same-stores sales are the best indicator of a retailer's health.