Posted on: Wednesday, June 5, 2002

Hawai'i Kai club being renovated

Advertiser Staff

Life Port Hawaii Co., a subsidiary of a Japanese construction firm, is investing up to $500,000 to renovate the Oahu Club in a push to expand membership at the Hawai'i Kai Drive tennis and swim club.

Life Port bought the 135-member club last year from Mainichi Sports USA Hawaii Inc. for an undisclosed amount and started renovating it in February, said Elton Kagimoto, attorney for Life Port.

Kagimoto said Life Port is spending between $300,000 and $500,000 on improvements to the club, which had fallen into some disrepair after Mainichi Sports' parent company went bankrupt early last year. The new owners have also started a membership drive in the Hawai'i Kai area.

"This is their first investment in Hawai'i and depending on how this one goes, I am sure that they will be looking at acquiring other clubs," Kagimoto said. "Their style is to acquire rather than build a business from scratch."

Life Port's parent company, Mugishima Co. of Nagoya, Japan, is a real estate development and construction firm that has ownership stakes in five health clubs in Japan.

Kagimoto said Life Port is renovating the club's 50-meter Olympic-sized pool and six tennis courts. The club was rescheduled to reopen later this month, but delays in the renovations make that unlikely, Kagimoto said.

A new lease with Kamehameha Schools, which owns the land under the 7.6-acre club, was recently recorded and runs through 2029.

Mainichi Sports took over the Hawai'i Kai club and its lease in 1988 for $2.5 million. Mainichi eventually opened to more clubs in Japan, one in Tokyo and another in Tsunashima, near Yokohama. While the city's high rents forced the closure of the Tokyo club, Mugishima acquired and continues to operate the club in Tsunashima.