Mililani mall to be sold to A&B
By Andrew Gomes
Advertiser Staff Writer
Alexander & Baldwin Inc. has reached an agreement to buy Mililani Shopping Center for roughly $30 million from Morita Co., a Nagoya, Japan-based manufacturer of sake and soy sauce that invested in Hawai'i real estate over the past several years.
The deal, confirmed yesterday by a Morita represent-ative, is expected to close next week. An A&B spokeswoman could not be reached for comment.
The transaction is in line with A&B's stated goal of expanding its real-estate portfolio, especially in Hawai'i, while the Morita Co. is expected to reinvest proceeds from what appears to have been a good investment in the center.
Mililani Shopping Center was the first of three shopping malls in the Central O'ahu community when it opened in 1970.
With 180,269 square feet of retail space, it is the community's second-largest mall, behind Mililani Town Center, and is 100 percent occupied by about 50 tenants, including Foodland Super Market, Ross and 24 Hour Fitness.
Douglas Pothul, senior vice president of local real-estate firm and center manager Colliers Monroe Friedlander, said the property has historically had strong demand for available space. "It would make a great addition to any large investor's portfolio," he said.
Morita Co. bought the center for $23 million three years ago from local real estate investment firm Kurisu & Fergus, according to property records.
The property was one of several Hawai'i real-estate investments made by Morita Co., which is headed out of Japan by Hideo "Joe" Morita, the eldest son of Sony Corp. co-founder and philanthropist Akio Morita.
Morita Co. also owns the Kilohana Square retail complex in Kapahulu as well as commercial property on Makaloa Street near Ala Moana Center.
For A&B, the Mililani Shopping Center deal comes a month after the acquisition of a Long Beach, Calif., shopping center for nearly $20 million.
A&B and its subsidiaries have concentrated on selling property and reinvesting proceeds in more real estate, having spent more than $220 million buying 17 commercial and development properties in the past three years.
Two months ago, the company lost a bid to buy Kaka'ako retail center operator Victoria Ward Ltd. to a last-minute $250 million offer by Ala Moana Center owner General Growth Properties.
Following the Victoria Ward bid, A&B's president and chief executive officer, Allen Doane, said the company's capital spending plan for real estate this year was $80 million, more than half of which is earmarked for acquisitions.
A&B owns 26 income-producing commercial properties in Hawai'i and 17 on the Mainland, comprising more than 4.6 million square feet of leasable space.
Reach Andrew Gomes at agomes@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8065.
