Theme park moves ahead
By Katherine Nichols
Advertiser Staff Writer
A long-planned $130 million Hawaiian theme park in the Kapolei area is going forward, with groundbreaking now planned for next spring in a move that would add the first new major attraction in Hawai'i in nearly three decades.
Kathleen Kagawa, president of Islands of Paradise Inc., the company spearheading the development, said $80 million in financing has been secured through letters of intent from local banks and unions, and five potential Mainland investors are interested in providing the remaining $50 million.
Groundbreaking on the park, which would provide about 300 construction jobs and employment for about 1,200 workers, had been tentatively set to begin this month but the economic slowdown after the Sept. 11 attacks slowed the project.
The park — which will feature an entertainment amphitheater, restaurants, retail shops, a roller coaster, tropical gardens, rides and activities linked to Hawaiian legends and culture — is now set for completion in October 2005.
Kagawa said the company has signed a letter of agreement to enter into a lease with the Estate of James Campbell for 100 acres, and has obtained zoning approvals, a conditional-use permit and a height variance for what would be a 180-foot elevator drop ride.
The project — 12 years in the making — has support from many in the tourism industry and would be the first major attraction built in the Islands since Sea Life Park opened in 1964. With attendance estimated at 1.4 million visitors a year — about 80 percent of that tourists — the park could give Hawai'i's No. 1 industry a significant boost.
"You cannot just be promoting demand side, because eventually we have a limit to growth," said Seiji Naya, executive director of the Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism, which supports the project. "We are at that stage ... . (Visitor arrivals) have basically been flat for 10 years. What we need is supply side."
The project also adds momentum to development in the West O'ahu community, as landowner Campbell Estate seeks to turn Kapolei into a self-sustained "second city" on the island.
In the past several years, the area has seen the development of movie theatres, shopping centers, restaurants, medical facilities, a water park, and state and city services.
"Where can we expand in Honolulu? That's the only place," Naya said. "We want a second city. We want to have development in Barbers' Point. We want a West O'ahu campus. We want development in Ko Olina. The whole city is moving toward that direction."
Building that critical mass in Kapolei is important to the theme park's viability, said Jerry Pupillo, general manager of Hawaiian Adventures Water Park, which opened in 1999 on 30 acres in Kapolei and which has a joint marketing agreement with Islands of Paradise.
"Their investors need to warm up and understand that the climate is going to get better," he said. "(Islands of Paradise's) biggest thing right now is nailing down some of their equity financing."
Kagawa said she hopes the park also can help preserve Hawaiian myths and legends by including spiritual gardens and a story-telling theatre for kupuna. Kagawa said she plans to work with the Hawaiian community to ensure the cultural and historical accuracy.
She also plans to include an educational, "Disney University" element, where workers are trained for employment in the park and later educated for upper-management positions. For this, she hopes to partner with the University of Hawai'i and explore the possibility of offering class credit for working in the park.
The project is still in the conceptual stage, but presents a tangible opportunity for students to engage non-traditional educational opportunities, said UH spokesman Paul Costello.
David Preece, vice president-North America for the Hawai'i Visitors & Convention Bureau, said the bureau will help market the yet-unnamed theme park.
Development team members in Islands of Paradise include Norman Doerges, who worked for 30 years with the Walt Disney Co., where he served as the chief operating executive for Disneyland; Michael V. Lee, former design director for the attractions division of LucasArts Entertainment, a subsidiary of LucasFilm Ltd.; Patrick Scanlon a former senior executive with Walt Disney Imagineering; and Bruce Coppa, executive director of Pacific Resource Partnership, a joint organization of Hawai'i unions and contractors.
