Ko Olina Resort

{{Short description|Census-designated place on Oahu, Hawaii, US}} {{Use American English|date=July 2025}} {{Use mdy dates|date=January 2025}} {{Promotional|date=August 2021}} {{Infobox settlement  |official_name = Ko Olina |other_name = |native_name =  |nickname = |settlement_type = [[Census-designated place]] |motto =  |image_skyline = |imagesize = 260px |image_caption = Ko Olina Resort, Oahu, Hawaii |image_flag = |flag_size = |image_seal = |seal_size = |image_shield = |shield_size = |image_blank_emblem = |blank_emblem_type = |blank_emblem_size = |image_map = |mapsize = |map_caption = |image_map1 = |mapsize1 = |map_caption1 = |image_dot_map = |dot_mapsize = |dot_map_caption = |dot_x = |dot_y = |pushpin_map =  |pushpin_label_position =  |pushpin_map_caption = |pushpin_mapsize =  |subdivision_type = Country |subdivision_name = United States |subdivision_type1 = [[U.S. state|State]] |subdivision_name1 = [[Oahu]], [[Hawaii]] |subdivision_type2 = |subdivision_name2 = |subdivision_type3 = |subdivision_name3 = |subdivision_type4 = |subdivision_name4 =  |government_footnotes = |government_type = |leader_title = |leader_name = |leader_title1 = |leader_name1 = |leader_title2 = |leader_name2 = |leader_title3 = |leader_name3 = |leader_title4 = |leader_name4 = |established_title = |established_date = |established_title2 =  |established_date2 = |established_title3 =  |established_date3 =  |area_magnitude = |unit_pref = Imperial |area_footnotes = <ref name="CenPopGazetteer2020">{{Cite web |title=2020 U.S. Gazetteer Files |url=https://www2.census.gov/geo/docs/maps-data/data/gazetteer/2020_Gazetteer/2020_gaz_place_15.txt |publisher=United States Census Bureau |access-date=December 18, 2021}}</ref> |area_total_km2 = 2.80 |area_land_km2 = 2.80 |area_water_km2 = 0.00 |area_total_sq_mi = 1.08 |area_land_sq_mi = 1.08 |area_water_sq_mi = 0.00 |area_water_percent = |area_urban_km2 = |area_urban_sq_mi = |area_metro_km2 = |area_metro_sq_mi = |area_blank1_title = |area_blank1_km2 = |area_blank1_sq_mi =  |population_as_of = [[2020 United States Census|2020]] |population_footnotes = |population_note = |population_total = 1999 |population_density_km2 = 715.08 |population_density_sq_mi = 1852.64 |population_metro = |population_density_metro_km2 = |population_density_metro_sq_mi = |population_urban = |population_density_urban_km2 = |population_density_urban_sq_mi = |population_blank1_title = |population_blank1 = |population_density_blank1_km2 = |population_density_blank1_sq_mi =  |timezone = [[Hawaii-Aleutian Standard Time Zone|Hawaii-Aleutian]] |utc_offset = -10 |timezone_DST = |utc_offset_DST = |coordinates = {{Coord|21|20|15|N|158|7|7|W|region:US-HI_type:city|display=inline,title}} |elevation_footnotes = |elevation_m = |elevation_ft = 35  | postal_code_type = [[ZIP code]] | postal_code = 96707<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.zipdatamaps.com/96707|title=Ko Olina HI ZIP Code|publisher=zipdatamaps.com|year=2024|access-date=February 5, 2024}}</ref> |area_code = [[Area code 808|808]] |blank_name = [[Federal Information Processing Standard|FIPS code]] |blank_info = 15-39400 |blank1_name = [[Geographic Names Information System|GNIS]] feature ID |blank1_info = |website = |footnotes = |pop_est_as_of = |pop_est_footnotes = |population_est = }}

'''Ko Olina Resort''' is a {{convert|642|acre|km2|adj=on}} master-planned vacation and residential community on the leeward coast of [[Oahu]], {{convert|17|mi}} west of [[Honolulu]].<ref>[https://koolina.com/destination/ Ko Olina Fact Sheet]</ref> Ko Olina has {{convert|2|mi}} of coastal frontage and includes three natural and four man-made lagoons with white-sand beaches. The master-planned resort community, owned by Honolulu-based The Resort Group, is home to four hotel and vacation-club resorts: [[Aulani|Aulani, a Disney Resort & Spa]], [[Marriott's Ko Olina Beach Club]], the Beach Villas at Ko Olina and The Four Seasons Resort O'ahu at Ko Olina, and villa homes at Ko Olina Kai, Kai Lani, Coconut Plantation, and Hillside.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://koolina.com/accommodations/ |title=Accommodations |publisher=Ko Olina |language=en |access-date=2019-01-15}}</ref> Previously, the [[JW Marriott Hotels|JW Marriott at Ko Olina]] occupied the [[Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts]] property. An [[Atlantis Resorts|Atlantis Resort]], similar to [[Atlantis The Palm, Dubai|Atlantis Dubai]], was being designed as an international destination for millennial travelers,<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.bordersandbucketlists.com/the-ultimate-guide-to-the-ko-olina-lagoons-hawaii/ |title=The Ultimate Guide to the Ko Olina Lagoons, Hawaii |date=2018-07-04 |publisher=Borders & Bucket Lists |language=en-US|access-date=2019-01-16}}</ref> before plans were scrapped due to financial issues.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.staradvertiser.com/2021/09/24/hawaii-news/developer-of-hawaii-atlantis-resort-in-financial-straits/ |title=Developer of Hawaii Atlantis resort in financial straits |website=Star Advertiser |first=Andrew |last=Gomes |date=September 24, 2021 |access-date=December 25, 2022}}</ref> The property was planned to be adjacent to the condominiums located on the Honu lagoon.

Major events hosted at Ko Olina Resort include the [[LPGA Lotte Championship]],<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.lpga.com/golf/tournaments/lpga/lpga-lotte-championship.aspx |title=LPGA Lotte Championship Website |access-date=December 13, 2012 |archive-date=May 6, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150506004901/http://www.lpga.com/golf/tournaments/lpga/lpga-lotte-championship.aspx |url-status=dead }}</ref> the Ko Olina Children's Film & Music Festival<ref>[https://www.koolinachildrensfestival.com/ Ko Olina Children's Film & Music Festival]</ref> and the Hawaii Food & Wine Festival.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.hawaiifoodandwinefestival.com/about-us |title=Hawaii Food & Wine Festival Website |access-date=December 13, 2012 |archive-date=January 16, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130116192239/http://hawaiifoodandwinefestival.com/about-us |url-status=dead }}</ref> Ko Olina is a spot frequented by celebrities.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://koolina.com/press/hollywood-hawaii-amy-schumer-kate-hudson-hit-four-seasons-resort-ko-olina/ |title = Hollywood in Hawaii: Amy Schumer and Kate Hudson Hit Four Seasons Resort Ko Olina}}</ref>

Under The Resort Group's ownership, Ko Olina has created a $10B master-planned waterfront community, created over 5,000 jobs and generates approximately $2.5B in economic impacts for the State of Hawaii annually.

==Demographics== {{US Census population |2020= 1999 |footnote=U.S. Decennial Census<ref name="DecennialCensus">{{cite web|url=http://www.census.gov/prod/www/decennial.html|title=Census of Population and Housing|publisher=Census.gov|accessdate=June 4, 2016}}</ref> }}

==History== Ko Olina is part of an original royal land division that extended from the waters off [[Pearl Harbor]] to the summit of the [[Waiʻanae Range]].<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20121024024428/http://www.honolulutransit.org/media/50597/20111206-aisp-wofh-sec3.pdf Cultural Surveys Hawaii Job Code: HONOULIULI 18]</ref> The area was a sacred place used for rest and relaxation by Hawaiian chiefs, like Kakuhihewa, and Hawaiian royalty.<ref>[http://www.paradisecovehawaii.com/funfacts/koolina.htm Paradise Cove History] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101220164444/https://paradisecovehawaii.com/FunFacts/koolina.htm |date=2010-12-20 }}</ref> [[Kamehameha the Great]] and his wife [[Kaahumanu|Ka’ahumanu]] were frequent visitors, bathing in the protected water of its reef-sheltered coves, fishing, and participating in religious ceremonies. Hawaii's last monarch, [[Liliuokalani|Lili’uokalani]], also came to Ko Olina for time away.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.koolina.com/explore/history-and-culture |title=Ko Olina History and Culture |access-date=December 13, 2012 |archive-date=January 16, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130116112518/http://www.koolina.com/explore/history-and-culture |url-status=dead }}</ref>

The industrialist [[James Campbell (industrialist)|James Campbell]] helped develop much of the Ewa Plain, where Ko Olina is situated. In the late 1800s, after purchasing 41,000 acres (166 km<sup>2</sup>) of arid, barren land, he had water wells drilled for irrigation and built a plantation for sugar-cane production. In the 1930s, his daughter [[Alice Kamokilaikawai Campbell]] moved to what was then a secluded shore in the area. During World War II, Ms. Campbell allowed her property at Ko Olina, which she called Lanikuhonua (“where heaven meets earth” in Hawaiian), to serve as a recreational retreat for army and navy servicemen.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.lanikuhonua.org/About/history |title=Lanikuhonua Cultural Institute Website – History |access-date=December 13, 2012 |archive-date=December 14, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121214102722/http://www.lanikuhonua.org/About/history |url-status=dead }}</ref>

In the mid 1980s, Hawaii developer Herbert Horita and his Japanese development/investment partner, Kumagai Gumi Co., Ltd and Takeshi Sekiguchi, purchased the Ko Olina Resort property and entitled, designed and built the four man-made lagoons, marina basin, golf course and all infrastructure. After the Japanese real-estate bubble burst in the early 1990s, development at the resort stopped after the completion of the golf course and just one hotel, which was the Ihilani Resort & Spa, which opened in December 1993<ref>[https://www.travelweekly.com/Destinations2001-2007/The-Ihilani-Resort-Spa-Remains-a-Destination-Unto-Itself "The Ihilani Resort & Spa Remains a Destination Unto Itself" by Tony Bartlett, "Travel Weekly" Sept. 9, 1997. Retrieved July 30, 2018.]</ref> and is now the Four Seasons Resort Oahu at Ko Olina.<ref>[https://www.latimes.com/travel/hawaii/la-tr-oahu-four-seasons-hotel-20160610-snap-story.html "Hawaii: Oahu's first Four Seasons resort opens at Ko Olina" By Jay Jones, "The Los Angeles Times": June 16, 2016. Retrieved August 30, 2016.]</ref>

In 1998 developer Jeffrey Stone, President of The Resort Group, and partners bought the property from Herbert Horita's lender, The Industrial Bank of Japan, and began its revival.<ref>[https://the.honoluluadvertiser.com/article/2001/Jul/05/ln/ln06a.html “Ko Olina Moves into New Phase of Growth” by James Gonser, ''Honolulu Star Advertiser'': July 5, 2001. Retrieved December 3, 2012.]</ref> To date they have added two vacation resorts, [[Marriott's Ko Olina Beach Club]] and [[Aulani|Aulani, a Disney Resort & Spa]]; villa homes, and the oceanfront Beach Villas at Ko Olina, a luxury condominium.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.resortmanagementco.com/about-us |title=Resort Management Company Fact Sheet |access-date=December 13, 2012 |archive-date=November 23, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121123042612/http://www.resortmanagementco.com/about-us |url-status=dead }}</ref> Approximately 150 additional long- and short-term rentals are managed by owners directly or through authorized agents. Stone and partners also have added a full-service marina; two commercial centers with retail and dining; four wedding chapels; an activity center, and a beach and sports club for residents. Currently, approximately 50 percent of the 642-acre resort is developed.

Ko Olina Station and Center was developed by Honu Group, with its first phase, Ko Olina Station, opening in 2009. Ko Olina Center opened in 2010, and unlike Station, featured a second floor for office space.<ref name="CBRE, Inc. brochure 1">{{cite web|title=Ko Olina Center – Office For Lease|url=http://www.cbre.us/o/honolulu/AssetLibrary/OF18KoOlinaCenter-2ndFloor.pdf|website=CBRE, Inc.|access-date=June 10, 2016|archive-date=March 25, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170325091234/http://www.cbre.us/o/honolulu/AssetLibrary/OF18KoOlinaCenter-2ndFloor.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref> Located directly across from Aulani, the center's purpose is to "offer office space, speciality stores, restaurants, amenities and other services" to Ko Olina.<ref name="Life and Style article">{{cite news|title=Ko Olina Coming of Age|url=http://www.thebeallcorporation.com/pdfs/ko_olina_station-coming_of_age_sm.pdf|access-date=June 11, 2016|work=Life and Style|pages=14–17}}</ref> Together, they consist of {{convert|56,000|sqft|m2|sigfig=2}} of retail and office space, with Station consisting of sixteen tenants and Center consisting of fourteen.<ref name="Life and Style article" /> In 2014, Ko Olina Station and Center added several new retailers to their lineup, including [[Robert Wyland|Wyland Galleries]], Island Sole, and Honolua Surf Co.<ref name="Ko Olina 2014 expansion">{{cite news|last1=Shimogawa|first1=Duane|title=Ko Olina Resort shopping centers in West Oahu adding new retailers|url=http://www.bizjournals.com/pacific/news/2014/05/19/ko-olina-resort-shopping-centers-in-west-oahu.html|access-date=June 10, 2016|work=Pacific Business News|date=May 19, 2014}}</ref> After this announcement followed the expansion of Pineapple Boutique, a luxury apparel retailer, that stated the opening of a second location within the mall.<ref name="Pineapple Boutique expansion">{{cite news|last1=Shimogawa|first1=Duane|title=Pizza Corner, Pineapples Boutique expanding at Ko Olina in West Oahu|url=http://www.bizjournals.com/pacific/news/2014/10/02/pizza-corner-pineapples-boutique-expanding-at-ko.html|access-date=June 10, 2016|work=Pacific Business News|date=October 2, 2014}}</ref> However, when the JW Marriott Ihilani, a former resort in Ko Olina, announced its closure, the center's tenants became worried about their businesses; Frank Mento, the owner of Pizza Corner, a local pizzeria, joked that his pizza parlor would "lose a slice of its sales".<ref name="Hawaii News Now businesses">{{cite news|last1=Mendoza|first1=Jim|title=Ko Olina businesses concerned, expectant as Ihilani closes|url=https://www.hawaiinewsnow.com/story/28318700/ko-olina-businesses-concerned-as-ihilani-closes|access-date=June 10, 2016|work=Hawaii News Now|date=March 9, 2015}}</ref> The mall is located next to the old [[Oahu Railway and Land Company]] tracks, which originally hauled freight and passengers to the [[North Shore (Oahu)|North Shore]] of Oahu; this location influenced the overall design of the center, incorporating the "historic" feel of the railroads.<ref name="Life and Style article" /> {{wide image|Ko Olina lagoon 1.JPG|1200px|Panoramic view of Ko Olina lagoon 1, "Koholā" ("humpback whale"), located behind Disney's Aulani resort}}

==References== {{Reflist|33em}} {{commons category}} {{Honolulu County, Hawaii}}

[[Category:Census-designated places in Honolulu County, Hawaii]] [[Category:Golf clubs and courses in Hawaii]] [[Category:Buildings and structures in Honolulu County, Hawaii]] [[Category:Resorts in Hawaii]] [[Category:Tourist attractions in Honolulu County, Hawaii]] [[Category:Marinas in the United States]] [[Category:Populated coastal places in Hawaii]]