San Francisco company buys Maui retail center

The 505 Front Street Shops were sold to an investment firm on Sept. 20 for $24.9M

A San Francisco real estate investment firm has acquired Maui's 505 Front Street Shops and Restaurants for $24.9 million from the family-run 3521 Corp., which has owned the center since 1989.

Fowler Property Acquisitions LLC bought the 66,000-square-foot retail complex in Lahaina's historic business district on Sept. 20.

Fowler said it is planning to do a multimillion-dollar renovation of the two-story complex, which includes retail and restaurants on the first floor and office space on the second level.

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A shopping center in one of Maui's most active commercial districts has been sold to a San Francisco real estate investment firm.

Fowler Property Acquisitions LLC acquired the 505 Front Street Shops and Restaurants in Lahaina on Sept. 20 for $24.9 million from the family-run 3521 Corp., which has owned the 66,000-square-foot center since 1989.

The family couldn't pass up the unsolicited offer by Fowler, said J.J. Elkin, president of 3521 Corp.

"We thought it was a fair price," he said. "Our understanding is they do intend to make an important investment and make the center even better than it has been."

Fowler is planning a multimillion-dollar renovation of the two-story complex, which includes retail and restaurants on the first floor and office space on the second level.

The company is currently in the permitting process and said it is still developing a business plan for the center, located in Lahaina's historic business district across from the harbor.

Elkin didn't know the current occupancy at the center, which houses about 30 mostly locally-own businesses, including a popular upscale Polynesian show and luau, which has been a major draw for tourists.

Other tenants include Lahaina Print Sellers, Goofy Foot Surf School, Gallerie Hawaii and a number of upscale restaurants.

Separately, Honolulu-based A&B Properties Inc. sold the 35,000-square-foot Fairway Shops at Kaanapali and the 45,000-square-feet Napili Plaza in West Maui for $28.5 million on Sept. 28 to an affiliate of the Festival Cos. of Los Angeles, which also manages the Royal Hawaiian Shopping Center in Waikiki.

Fowler also acquired in September the 105,000-square-foot Gold Coast Business Center, comprised of eight buildings in Kailua-Kona's old industrial area on the Big Island, from an affiliate of the Shidler Group.

Fowler, whose strategy is to invest in under-valued assets and create high returns on equity, is expanding its portfolio of office, industrial and retail complexes in Hawaii.

The company recently acquired eight commercial properties including the 1221 Kapiolani building, the home of Gyu-Kaku Japanese BBQ Dining restaurant; the Kakaako Commerce Center warehouse building; and the Bamboo Commerce Center, an industrial warehouse on Dillingham Boulevard across from the old Foremost milk factory.