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As part of the deal, the buyer has agreed to develop the Atlantis Resort, which has long been planned for the 26.3-acre lagoon-front parcel between Aulani, A Disney Resort and the Beach Villas at Ko Olina.
A California real estate development company that owns The Waldorf Astoria in Las Vegas has bought two oceanfront parcels at Ko Olina Resort and plans to move forward with long-delayed plans to develop a $2 billion Atlantis Resort on one of the properties.
Newage Ko Olina, an affiliate of Kam Sang Co. Inc., purchased the 43.55 acres fronting two of Ko Olina’s lagoons for a total of about $216 million. The seller was China Oceanwide, which paid more than $424 million for the properties in 2015 and 2016.
The total includes a $177 million purchase price, $25 million in unpaid real property taxes and association fees and $15 million in back fees to The Resort Group, Ko Olina Resort’s master developer. The deal also included seller financing in the form of two mortgages totaling $87 million with Haitong International Securities Co. Ltd. of Hong Kong, the lender that has been acting as receiver for China Oceanwide’s projects since 2022.
As part of the deal, Kam Sang Co. has agreed to develop the Atlantis Resort, which has long been planned for the 26.3-acre lagoon-front parcel between Aulani, A Disney Resort and the Beach Villas at Ko Olina. The company is also looking at other hotel and resort brands such as Regent, Mandarin Oriental, St. Regis, Waldorf Astoria and Fairmont for a 17.3-acre parcel between the Beach Villas and Marriott’s Ko Olina Beach Club.
Jeff Stone, CEO and president of The Resort Group, told Pacific Business News that the development timeline for building both hotels concurrently is about five years, and will cost about $2.5 billion — $2 billion to build the Atlantis Resort, which would be the first in the United States. Atlantis Resorts, which is owned by Kerzner International, has a 25-year hotel management agreement for the property, he said.
Atlantis will have about 500 hotel rooms and 500 vacation-stay, or condominium, units, while the second hotel will have about 250 hotel rooms and 250 vacation units for a total of 1,500 keys, Stone said.
Kam Sang Co. is a real estate development company based in Arcadia, California, whose principals include President Ronnie Lam and his daughter, Tiffany Lam.
Tiffany Lam partnered with Panda Express founders Andrew and Peggy Cherng on the purchase of the Mandarin Oriental hotel in Las Vegas, which was rebranded to The Waldorf Astoria. The Cherngs own a number of Hawaii properties, including the former Pacific Business News Building at 1833 Kalakaua Ave.
Kam Sang Co. also owns The Ritz-Carlton Rancho Mirage near Palm Springs and The Embassy Suites in Glendale, according to the company’s LinkedIn page.
“We are highly encouraged by the renewed interest in investing in Hawaii,” Stone said in a statement. “These projects will generate more quality, well-paying jobs and fuel the economic engine we created with the support of our governor and mayor. It is a promising sign of continued economic growth for both the city and the state. The aesthetic already at Ko Olina is the foundation of the future.”
Newage Ko Olina and the Kam Sang Co. were represented by Powell & Aucello, a Hawaii-based hotel brokerage firm.
“These high-value properties are entitled for the development of a combined 2,200 hotel rooms and residences, making this transaction one of the most significant in Hawaii’s luxury hospitality market,” said Kevin Aucello, principal at Powell & Aucello, which represented the Kam Sang Co. “We are honored to have partnered with Newage Ko Olina on this landmark transaction and look forward to seeing their vision for these exceptional properties realized.”
Matt Bittick, of CBRE’s Honolulu office, and Henry Bose Jr., of CBRE’s San Francisco office, represented the seller.
China Oceanwide’s properties in Hawaii, New York and Shanghai have been in receivership since 2022. The subsidiary that owns its Los Angeles project was placed in involuntary Chapter 11 bankruptcy and the company’s stock has been suspended from trading.
In 2022, China Oceanwide sold 484 acres of land slated for residential development and a golf course between Kapolei and Ko Olina Resort at a loss to WT Laulima LLC, a partnership of Utah-based Wasatch Group and Hawaii-based Tower Development, for $92.9 million.
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