Honolulu, Hawaii/USA

July 8, 2008, Honolulu, Hawaii – Much needed relief to Oahu’s industrial land supply is finally set to occur. Phase 2A of the Kapolei Business Park in West Oahu has recently received regulatory approval from the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs and will begin marketing its fifty six fee simple industrial zoned lots ranging in size from one-half to one and a half acres for sale. Colliers Monroe Friedlander will be handling lot sales for the owner, LV Kapolei 54, LLC. LV Kapolei 54, LLC bought the 54-acre parcel in April 2005 for $22,250,000 and has been working through the subdivision and regulatory approval process since then.

“Subdivision of land is never a simple process”, says Scott L. Mitchell, Executive Vice President of Colliers. “It requires a delicate balance between meeting the public needs and ensuring that what is built meets the City’s standard for quality and connectivity.”

The approvals come at a very critical time for Oahu’s industrial marketplace as there is virtually no available land for development currently. While LV Kapolei 54, LLC has received the approvals to proceed, roadway and infrastructure improvements will still take 12-18 months to complete.

“We have been joking with prospective buyers that the nearest available industrial land for development would be in California”, says Guy V. Kidder, Vice President at Colliers.  With the exception of a few scattered lot re-sales on Oahu, that is not far from the truth. According to Colliers, in the past few months, they have put under contract or sold a three-acre, a six-acre and seven and half acre lot in West Oahu, which leaves only a very few choices for users who need any kind of lot size whatsoever and some of those choices are leasehold. The three-acre parcel closed just recently at a price north of $40.00 per square foot after closing costs are factored in, said Colliers.

At a time when master ground lease rents are poised to reset at benchmark high levels (2009 to 2012) in the Mapunapuna, Kalihi and Airport areas and when notices to vacate have started to creep out to tenants at the seventy-acre Kapalama Military Reservation to make way for much needed harbor space, this land will give industrial users desperately needed alternatives.

According to Kidder, “we have received a fair amount of inquiries already including some unsolicited letters of interest, but we have been legally unable to respond until now.”

With recent fee simple industrial transactions in the urban core occurring above the $120 per square foot level (a Mapunapuna lot at $121.00 psf & First Hawaiian Banks purchase of the Gaspro lot on Dillingham Blvd.) and a Gentry lot north of $60.00 per square foot, Kapolei Business Park remains one of the least expensive alternatives on Oahu. “And with smaller lot sizes that don’t promote buying more than you need, these lots should be received more favorably during these uncertain economic times,” says Mitchell.

About Colliers International

Colliers International is a global affiliation of independently owned commercial real estate firms. The organization's 10,092 employees span the world in 267 offices in 57 countries. On a worldwide basis, Colliers manages 672,945,918 square feet, and has revenue of $US 1,620,958,349.

Contact Information

For further information please contact Andrew D. Friedlander at 808.523.9797 or via email at andrew@colliershawaii.com or Mike Y. Hamasu at 808.523.9792 or via email at mike@colliershawaii.com.

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