Developer to rebuild Coco Palms Hotel

By Jan TenBruggencate
Advertiser Kaua'i Bureau

The lagoons at the Coco Palms Hotel are considered historic and aren't expected to be altered significantly when the resort is restored. Advertiser library photo • Feb. 7, 2000

Real-estate developer Richard Weiser said he has an agreement with San Francisco-based resort owner Wailua Associates to purchase the property with its palm-shaded lagoons and thatch-roofed bungalows for an undisclosed price.

"It's our hope that we can bring back a sense of Coco Palms," Weiser said.

Coco Palms was developed in the 1950s in the image of what visitors thought a Polynesian tourism property should be like. Tourists can find that model re-created today in Tahiti, the Cook Islands, Samoa and elsewhere in the Pacific.

But the original Coco Palms was damaged by Hurricane Iniki in 1992 and closed several months later. Its reopening was delayed by battles between Wailua Associates and its insurance carriers. The palm gardens and lawns are still maintained, but the hotel rooms and public areas are weathered and leaking.

Wailua Associates general counsel James Murad confirmed the deal with Weiser, but would say little else. "We have a contract," he said.

Weiser, who keeps homes and offices on Kaua'i and in Charleston, S.C., said the sales arrangement allows him to seek county zoning permits before officially completing the purchase.

He said he has met with Kaua'i Mayor Bryan Baptiste and expects to file permit applications in February with hopes of having the approvals in hand by the end of 2004.

Weiser plans to save as many of the original Coco Palms structures as possible, including the Queen's Audience Hall. "Several of the front buildings can be saved. Several pieces can be restored," he said.

The lagoons are considered historic and would not be significantly altered.

A previous proposal to reopen the Coco Palms by developer Jim Reed's Lincoln Consulting Group fell apart over financing issues after the 2001 terrorist attacks.

Reed's plan involved developing a combination of time share and hotel rooms. Weiser plans a similar scheme, with the original 396 hotel rooms converted into 201 time-share units and 172 hotel suites.

The all-suite hotel would be run by a major hotel operator, he said.

One of the serious issues for Coco Palms is the island's Kuhio Highway. The belt road runs between the resort and Wailua Beach. The state is considering a bypass alternative that could run through the mauka side of the property.

Weiser said his design team is working with state transportation officials on a new alignment. And he said he hopes to provide hotel guests with a safe way to reach the sandy beach. One option is a tunnel under the highway, but a pedestrian bridge over it is more likely, he said.

The developer said he would not estimate when the project might be completed, partly because it is so complicated. "There are lots of pieces to this puzzle," he said.

Coco Palms was a small inn when hotelier Lyle Guslander acquired it and turned it over to Grace Buscher to run. Guslander, who died in 2000, put outrigger canoes in the lagoons, created the evening torch-lighting ceremony, outfitted bathrooms with sinks made of giant clam shells and combed Polynesia for artifacts to decorate the resort.

The wedding chapel was used as a location for Rita Hayworth's film "Miss Sadie Thompson."

Reach Jan TenBruggencate at jant@honoluluadvertiser.com or (808) 245-3074.