West Ka'ahumanu Avenue and South Kane Street
Maui County (Kahului), Hawai'i
The fourth major shopping mall built in Hawai'i was located on the northern shores of the island of Maui. KA'AHUMANU ["kah-ah-hoo-mah-noo"] CENTER occupied 33.7 acres of a 58.3-acre parcel located .7 miles northwest of center city Kahului. The site was shared by the open-air shopping center and 25.1-acre Maui Land Pineapple Company's Kahului Cannery.
The complex was developed by Honolulu's Dillingham Land Company (who had also built Honolulu's ALA MOANA CENTER). Southern California's Hogan, Chapman, Cobeen & Weitz firm was the principal designer. Construction got underway in March 1972. A 1-level (39,500 square foot), Honolulu-based Liberty House became the first operational KA'AHUMAMU CENTER tenant on October 21, 1972. A 1-level (54,400 square foot) Sears opened its doors on December 14th.
Work was then concentrated on the single-level, open-air mall being built between the two department stores. Thirty-three inline stores debuted in September 1973. Twelve more opened for business in November. KA'AHUMANU CENTER was officially dedicated in August 1974. At this time, the facility encompassed approximately 343,000 leasable square feet, with a total of forty-seven stores and services.
Charter tenants included Orange Julius, House of Music, Thom McAn Shoes, Waldenbooks, Kinney Shoes, Hartfield's ladies' wear, Craft's Drug, McInerny's Men's Wear, San Francisco Rag Shop, a Ben Franklin variety store and (13,000 square foot), Japan-based Shirokiya department store. The single-screen Village Theater, an in-mall venue, was in business by April 1975.
The shopping hub was the first regional-class shopping center on the "Valley Isle". It joined the community-class MAUI MALL {.7 mile northeast, in Maui County} which had opened in 1971.
The Maui Land Pineapple Company, which owned the land beneath KA'AHUMANU CENTER, acquired the mall structure in 1986. On February 26, 1993, they embarked on a 72 million dollar expansion and renovation. In June 1993, a joint venture, known as Kaahumanu Center Associates, was formed with the Employees Retirement System of the State of Hawai'i. This endeavor would help fund the ongoing mall expansion.
During this project, half of the Kahului Cannery North Building was demolished. It was replaced by a 2-level (160,300 square foot) South Wing. This was anchored by a 2-level (86,000 square foot) J.C. Penney. The center section of the mall had a second level added, which included the 8-bay Queen's Market Food Court. A Teflon-covered fiberglass roof was installed over all common area. Moreover, a multilevel parking garage was built, which connected into the west side of the new J.C. Penney. The existing Sears was also expanded to 86,800 square feet, with Liberty House being enlarged to 80,000.
The Consolidated Theaters Kaahumanu 6-plex was installed in the mall's new Upper Level. This venue was in business by November 1994. Its grand opening signaled the completion of the refurbishment project. The mall now encompassed approximately 572,800 leasable square feet, with 110 stores and services. It assumed the position of third-largest shopping mall in Hawai'i.
A small, but decidedly upscale, competitor arrived on the scene in the year 2000. THE SHOPS AT WAILEA {13.5 miles south, in Maui County} was a collection of boutiques, bistros and art galleries, situated at the center of the world-class Wailea Resort.
KA'AHUMANU CENTER was officially renamed QUEEN KA'AHUMANU CENTER on March 17, 2001 (this being the 233rd anniversary of the monarch's birthday). Anchor alterations got underway on November 22, 2001, when Liberty House was converted to the Macy's masthead. J.C. Penney pulled out of the mall on January 10, 2003. A Macy's Men's, Home & Children's Store opened in the space in the fall.
In September of the same year, ownership of QUEEN KA'AHUMANU CENTER changed. A joint venture of San Francisco-based Seligman Western and Coastwood Capital Partners, and Santa-Barbara-based Somera Investment Partners, acquired the complex. They performed a 5 million dollar face lift in 2005. The Grand Staircase, in Center Court, was removed and replaced with the Queen's Stage, a venue for live entertainment. New escalators were installed in the mall, along with updated lighting, restrooms and a nautical-theme children's play area.
The Seligman Western Company bought out its joint venture partners and established 100-percent ownership of QKC in January 2007. They hired El Segundo, California's Pacific Retail Capital Partners to lease and manage the facility.
Repercussions of Covid-19, and various financial woes, caused the owner of the property to default on their mall loan. The facility was foreclosed on in June 2020, with over 88 million dollars owed. Adding insult to injury, the QKC Sears -a 1972 charter tenant- was shuttered on November 14, 2021. As of mid-2023, the mall was still being managed by Pacific Retail.
Sources:
The Honolulu Advertiser
http://www.queenkaahumanucenter.com
http://www.queenkaahumanucenter.com (website on Internet Archive Wayback Machine)
www.mauiland.com
Maui County, Hawai'i property tax assessor website
www.vcc.usa.com / VCC General Contractor Construction
https://www.mauinews.com
www.seligman.com
