A little piece of Waikiki retail is slated for redevelopment by the owner of a large shopping complex in the middle of O'ahu's main tourist destination.

Four low-rise buildings with several tenants at the corner of Kalakaua and Royal Hawaiian avenues will be torn down and replaced with one new building under the plan, which also calls for connecting the building with the adjacent Waikiki Shopping Plaza.

The developer, Waikiki Shopping Plaza LLC, recently filed a final environmental assessment detailing the plan, which has received support from the Waikiki Neighborhood Board.

Rick Egged, president of the Waikiki Improvement Association, said the redevelopment is a relatively small but important upgrade to some of the older buildings in the area.

"It'll be another important contribution to the revitalization of Waikiki," he said.

The structures to be demolished — four buildings from one to four stories — were built in 1950 and 1957, according to county property records. About 20 years later, the eight-story Waikiki Shopping Plaza was built on the rest of the block, with the older buildings occupying one corner.

Waikiki Shopping Plaza will receive some interior and exterior alterations to help integrate it with the new building, according to the environmental assessment.

The new building will have the same amount of floor area as the combined buildings slated for demolition, with three floors and a rooftop area partially topped with a trellis and possibly landscaping. Though the maximum allowed height for the parcel is 280 feet, the building will rise about 60 feet.

Also, an alley will be eliminated and the footprint of the existing buildings that encroaches into modern pedestrian setback areas will be reduced.

The developer also said renovating the existing building was studied, but was determined to be cost prohibitive.

"The project is intended to enhance the overall visual character and Hawaiian sense of place for the site," the developer said in the environmental assessment.

In August, a representative of Waikiki Shopping Plaza LLC said the project was in an early planning phase and lacked details on the type of commercial tenants that would be sought. Presently, the buildings serve retail and office users. Yesterday, a project representative could not be reached for any additional information.

Following a conceptual presentation of the plan in August, 10 members of the Waikiki Neighborhood Board voted to support the project, while two members voted against it.

Permitting is expected to take about a year and be followed by construction that's expected to last 21 months.