Posted on: Thursday, August 16, 2001

California group buys Hotel Hana-Maui

Associated Press

HANA, Maui — A group of California investors acquired the Hotel Hana-Maui yesterday, the second time in less than two years that the hotel has changed hands.

The new owners, led by the owners of the Post Ranch Inn in Big Sur, Calif., said they want to preserve the hotel's history.

"Our vision is to restore the Hotel Hana-Maui to its former glory as the premier luxury small hotel in Hawai'i, offering an authentic 'Old Hawai'i' experience," said Peter Heinemann, one of the principal owners of the Post Ranch Inn.

The hotel will be managed by Passport Resorts LLC, a hotel management company owned by Heinemann and partner Michael Freed, who are also affiliated with the Jean-Michel Cousteau Fiji Islands Resort.

"Just as Post Ranch preserves the history and spirit of California in the late 1800s, the Hotel Hana-Maui offers the guests the chance to experience Hawai'i as it was a hundred years ago in its natural, authentic state," said Freed.

Terms of the sale, which included the hotel, the Hana Ranch Store, Hana Ranch Restaurant and Hana Ranch Gas Station, were not disclosed.

In June, the former owners, Meridian Financial Resources, notified state labor officials through its Hana-Maui Land Co. enterprise that the sale would affect 200 workers.

Meridian, a Chicago-based investment group, bought both the hotel and the surrounding Hana Ranch in 1999 from Keola Hana Maui Inc. for an undisclosed sum.

Earlier this year, it sold the 4,500-acre ranch to Hana Acquisition Partners while keeping the hotel.

Meridian partner Mark Ward said his group put about $2 million in improvements into the hotel and brought occupancy from 10 percent to about 50 percent.

A hotel worker said in June that employees were told they will have to reapply for jobs with the new owner.