BUSINESS BRIEFS
Hawai'i supplier in surfboard deal
Advertiser Staff and News Services
Fiberglass Hawaii Inc. President Ted Wilson has become a partner and investor in a new California-based company that will fill some of the demand created when Clark Foam, the world's largest surfboard blank maker, shut down in December.
Fiberglass Hawaii, a supplier of resin and other materials that has branches on O'ahu, Maui and in California, will distribute the new company's blanks in Hawai'i. Other investors in the venture, US Blanks LLC, include Billabong founder Gordon Merchant, founder of surf-wear-maker Billabong International and former Clark Foam employees.
A&B SELLS MAUI OFFICE COMPLEX
Alexander & Baldwin Inc. yesterday sold the Maui leasehold office building One Main Plaza for an undisclosed price.
The buyer was the John Saunders Trust of Newport Beach, Calif. The six-story Wailuku building was built in 1989 and is about 83 percent occupied.
A&B bought the complex in 1997 for $7.2 million. Maui County expressed interest in buying the building a year ago for an estimated $10.5 million, but that deal fell through.
HILTON TO RUN KAUA'I HOTEL
The 350-room Kauai Beach Resort hotel is slated to be managed under the Hilton brand this summer after a $14 million renovation.
The license agreement re-establishes a Hilton presence on Kaua'i. The hotel, most recently managed under the Radisson brand, originally opened in 1986 as the Kauai Hilton.
Local developer Brian Anderson bought the property in late 2004 for $58 million and is selling refurbished units to investors.
LINGLE PRESENTS AWARDS TO HOTELS
Gov. Linda Lingle yesterday presented the annual Green Business Awards to the Hawaii Prince Hotel, the Hilton Waikoloa Village and the Hawaii Hotel and Lodging Association in recognition of their "commitment to improving the environment and conserving energy and resources."
The awards are a part of the Hawaii Green Business Program.
The hotels were chosen based on several criteria, including completing a self-audit checklist of environmental practices, recycling, information sharing, attending environmental forums, and participating in quarterly meetings.
NORTHWEST PILOTS AGREE TO PAY CUT
MINNEAPOLIS — Pilots reached a tentative pay-cut deal with Northwest Airlines Corp. yesterday, a major step toward ending a showdown that put the bankrupt airline's future in doubt.
The Northwest branch of the Air Line Pilots Association announced the agreement but didn't release details. The nation's fourth-largest airline said it got the $358 million in savings it sought.
The deal would still have to be approved by the union's leadership and members. The union said its leaders would meet last night to consider the agreement. Pilots were the last Northwest union without a deal.
