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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Tuesday, October 5, 2004

Work advancing on Best Buys

By Rod Ohira
Advertiser Central O'ahu Writer

Electronics megaretailer Best Buy is moving forward with plans to open stores in Iwilei and Waimalu, investing almost $20 million in its first plunge into the Hawai'i marketplace.

Groundbreaking for the Iwilei store at 478 Alakawa St. was held Friday, while construction on the Waimalu outlet, awaiting final city permits, could begin in December, said Tom Smith, Best Buy's Richfield, Minn.-based manager for both projects.

The projected opening for both stores is midsummer 2005, which will put outlets in every state except Wyoming for the nation's No. 1 specialty retailer of consumer electronics, personal computers and entertainment software, said Smith.

The Waimalu project, more so than Iwilei, has been plagued with setbacks over the past three years.

Smith "refined" the original Waimalu design of a 60-foot-high structure — a two-story building built over a parking lot — at the corner of Kamehameha Highway and Kanuku Street to address community concerns about further infringements on the sight line to Pearl Harbor Historic Trail.

The new design is acceptable to neighborhood boards in 'Aiea and Pearl City as well as area community groups. The store, at the old Tony Honda dealership property in Waimalu, will be 250 feet long and built on a parking lot for 200 cars. The structure will be 40 feet high and include improved landscaping around it.

"It's a much smaller building with more open views," Smith said of the $9.5 million venture.

Another factor in doing the redesign was that costs for the initial project at Waimalu had risen to more than $14 million because of delays, said Smith.

"The site was affordable, but we just could not afford the building," Smith said. "The biggest cost was going to be the concrete parking deck."

In his five years with Best Buy, Smith has worked on 30 projects in 12 states. Working in Hawai'i, he said, has been a unique experience.

"It's been a long road and huge learning curve," Smith said. "The biggest learning curve is understanding the culture. It's very difficult to push here because things (like the permitting process) move at a slower pace; it's Hawai'i time.

"Understanding the business culture in Hawai'i is important because a lot of it is based on relationships," Smith added. "You need to meet with City Council so they can understand what's going on. (The slower pace) can be frustrating but part of it is accepting it and putting it into your business plans."

The Iwilei store will be built for about $9 million, Smith noted.

Each store will employ about 120 people. Smith said Kimo Cano and Shaun Troup, both of whom have local ties, have been hired to manage the Waimalu and Iwilei stores, respectively.

'Aiea Neighborhood Board Chairman William Clark and Claire Tamamoto, president of the 'Aiea Community Association, have no objections to the new design. Traffic, however, is still a concern although Clark noted, "I wouldn't lay it at the feet of Best Buy."

"Traffic is always a problem on the Kamehameha Highway corridor," Clark added. "It just gets more full and more full."

Reach Rod Ohira at 535-8181 or rohira@honoluluadvertiser.com.

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