Gov. Ben Cayetano cited the proposed retail and entertainment complex in his State of the State speech yesterday, saying it would add 1,700 jobs to Hawaii's struggling economy.
The 915,000-square-foot mall is the centerpiece of Victoria Ward's retail expansion plans.
"The proposed shopping center . . . is intended to complement Ala Moana Center and create an expanded retail district," said Mitch D'Olier, Victoria Ward's chief executive officer.
Jan Yokota, executive director of the state Hawaii Community Development Authority which oversees redevelopment in Kakaako, said her agency last month met with D'Olier who outlined the project.
Yokota said the Simon DeBartolo Group will be the developer of the complex. She referred all questions about the center's anchor tenants to the developers.
Victoria Ward and the Simon DeBartolo Group have not signed a development contract and have not applied for state building approvals.
Cayetano has been a vocal supporter of the Ward project. Last year, he cited the redevelopment of the Ward property in his proposal to revitalize the waterfront.
Yesterday, he pledged to provide the infrastructure for the retail center. D'Olier said the project can't get off the ground until the infrastructure is in place.
D'Olier said he welcomed the governor's support but wouldn't disclose the infrastructure costs or other details of the plan. A spokeswoman for Indianapolis-based Simon DeBartolo did not return calls.
Simon DeBartolo is the nation's largest shopping mall developer, controlling some 110 million square feet of retail space in 33 states. The company was known as Simon Property Group until August 1996 when it acquired rival DeBartolo Realty Corp. for $3 billion and merged the two companies.
Founded in 1935, Victoria Ward is a closely held private corporation that owns about 65 acres in Kakaako. Their land is home to about 425 retail, restaurant and industrial tenants.
Ward Warehouse was built in 1975 and was initially planned as a temporary structure.
The shopping mall plan comes as Victoria Ward is trying to transform its Kakaako holdings into a shopping mecca. In 1995, Victoria Ward opened a 43,000-square-foot Sports Authority outlet at Ward Avenue and a 30,000-square-foot Borders Books & Music shop at Ward Centre. Computer City, meanwhile, opened its second Oahu store, a 16,000-square-foot outlet, across from Ward Centre last April.
Meanwhile, Ala Moana Center has embarked on a major expansion of its own. Ala Moana is adding a 160,000-square-foot Neiman Marcus department store and a 268,000-square-foot Nordstrom department store, as part of a plan to add about half a million-square-feet of retail space by 1999.
"How much more retail can Hawaii take," said Dwight Yoshimura, Ala Moana's general manager. He noted that there has been a lot of consolidation in Hawaii's retail market over the past few years.
Don Bremner, vice chairman of the 100-member Kakaako Improvement Association, said today that that Victoria Ward's redevelopment plan will redefine the character of Kakaako, which was once known as a light industrial and business services district. But the changes also offer financial benefits, he said.
"From our standpoint, it sounds like it will add a little bit of economic stability and that will positively affect other aspects of Kakaako," Bremner said.