Howard Hughes Corp. Plans New Ward Village Condo High-Rise in Downtown Honolulu

By Adriana Pop, Associate Editor

The Howard Hughes Corp. is planning the construction of a new mixed-use condominium high-rise as part of its Ward Village master-planned community in the heart of downtown Honolulu.

According to the Pacific Business News, the 466-unit project is slated to rise at the former site of Hawaii’s first Nordstrom Rack store. It will also include a flagship 50,000-square-foot Whole Foods Market, the company’s largest location in Hawaii.

The Texas-based developer is asking the Hawaii Community Development Authority for five modifications, including a rotation of the project that would preserve mauka to makai view planes, in response to the community’s demands. An upcoming hearing for the company’s proposal is scheduled for Nov. 5 at 461 Cooke St. in Honolulu. A modification hearing will take place on Nov. 6, and on Jan. 7, 2015, at 545 Queen St., the committee will reach a final decision.

If approved, the new development at 330 Kamakee St. will offer a combined 78,319 square feet of commercial space, 53,375 square feet of indoor and outdoor recreation space and 1,301 parking stalls. Plans also call for public open spaces, as well as streets and significant improvements to the neighborhood.

Howard Hughes is currently building two other ultra-luxury condo towers in Kakaako as part of the first phase of Ward Village. Called Waiea and Anaha, the two high-rises will bring nearly 500 residential units, along with street-level retail. Waiea is located at 1118 Ala Moana Blvd., across from the Ward Entertainment Center, and includes 171 units, while the 311-unit Anaha (pictured) will be rising at 1108 Auahi St., on the site of the former Pier 1 Imports store.

“The first phase of the Ward Village Master Plan has brought significant economic growth and increased community amenities to the neighborhood,” David Striph, senior vice president for Hawaii for The Howard Hughes Corp., told the newspaper. “As we move forward with the early planning stages for phase two, we have submitted an application to the Hawaii Community Development Authority for a sustainably-designed mixed-use project at 330 Kamakee St.”

Slated to rise on 60 acres between the city’s downtown and Waikiki, the massive Ward Village mixed-use community is one of the largest LEED-ND Platinum-certified projects in the U.S. and the only one of its kind in Hawaii. At full build-out over the next decade, the project could bring more than 4,000 residential units and more than 1 million square feet of retail and commercial space.

Photo credit: wardvillage.com