A small, neighborhood retail center, to be anchored by Assaggio, is under construction kitty corner from Kahala Mall.

Thomas Ky, the owner of Assaggio, is building the 8,948-square-foot center as TK Kahala LLC at the corner of Waialae and Kilauea avenues, with plans to open a sixth restaurant at the location soon.

Five other Assaggio restaurants, offering southern Italian cuisine, already are open at Ala Moana Center, Hawaii Kai, Kailua, Mililani and Kapolei.

The retail center at 4346 Waialae Ave., however, also offers a few other spaces available for retail, medical or office use, measuring between 1,000 to 2,000 square feet each.

Nora Bland of Sofos Realty is leasing the property.

Construction is expected to be completed in April, she said, with tenants receiving their spaces by May.

Ky, a Vietnamese immigrant, got his start as a teenager washing dishes and busing tables in New York before moving to Hawaii, where his dream of opening his own restaurant became a reality.

The retail center will come with parking, and complement businesses next door at 4400 Kalanianaole Highway, which include Umeke Market, Petland, and the Great Harvest Bread Co.

For many years, the slightly more than half-acre lot owned by Kamehameha Schools remained vacant, although the same address was once home to Andy's Kahala Chevron.