A big piece of the downtown Honolulu puzzle is in place. The building surrounded by Fort Street Mall and King and Bethel streets has been a Walmart, a Macy's and a Liberty House.
Walmart closed the location in April 2023, about 10 years after buying the building. The closure of a grocery store and pharmacy marked a loss in an area trying to draw more families and working professionals.
"That was very concerning to us because what we had wanted to envision was to bring about more residents in downtown that would, you know, enliven the areas beyond the 9 to 5, Monday to Friday traffic," said Christine Camp, the president and CEO of the Avalon Group.
The closure came just months after Avalon acquired the nearby Davies Pacific Center, a 1970s-era building that many powerhouse law firms and businesses called home. Avalon has been turning most of the floors into residential condos for sale — a $200 million construction project, Camp said, on top of $100 million for the acquisition.
"So we felt that it was very important that we make every effort possible to secure that corner, secure that block if you will, and make that a vibrant piece of an overall downtown," Camp added.
Camp announced last week that Avalon bought the former Walmart building for $38 million. The property includes 87,000 square feet of store space and 454 parking stalls.
"It took us a very long time to acquire this site because trying to have lenders and investors believe in the vision of a downtown, where a lot of people felt that downtown is on its decline — the homeless, the security issues — all these things became the obstacle for believers to try to secure investments to fund the acquisition and the redevelopment of it. Luckily, I was able to convince many of the local investors," she said.
Camp said the plan is to build a "commercial center" with restaurants, bars, and indoor and outdoor recreation. She said the Hawaiʻi Pacific University community also factors into the development.
"Just imagine 5,000 students from HPU going to the science hall, having their lunches, having the recreation next door, while our residents also, you know, participate and be able to use those pickleball courts, but it's not mandated," Camp said.
Camp estimated that a handful of developers have invested more than a billion dollars in a six-block area of downtown Honolulu.
Developers like Douglas Emmett and Avalon have completed or are in the process of converting office towers into residential buildings — a lasting effect of the work-from-home movement during the pandemic.
So what are the barriers to revitalizing downtown? A bill to update the building code has been stuck in committee at the Honolulu City Council. Is there a way forward for compromise with Bill 21? A sticky point is whether residential conversions must have operable windows.
"There are well-intentioned, civic-minded leaders, including our council members and our mayor and people who work in this city. And I blame none of them. It is the law. We have a law that is archaic," Camp said. "We're waiting to help people understand how safe it is, and that the mechanical ventilations actually do work."
This story aired on The Conversation on March 4, 2024. The Conversation airs weekdays at 11 a.m. on HPR-1. Sophia McCullough adapted this story for the web.
