Maui Lani Center to Move Forward with Safeway as Anchor Tenant
HRT Ltd.-led project recently secured approvals from Maui Planning Commission
HONOLULU – Safeway, one of North America’s largest grocery retailers, today announced an agreement with HRT Ltd., developer of Maui Lani Center and a subsidiary of The Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Trust, to move forward with a lease to serve as the anchor tenant of the Maui Lani Center. The Center was recently approved by the Maui Planning Commission and will feature a total of 105,000 square feet of retail, restaurant and office space and include 550 parking stalls.
Safeway plans to develop a 60,000 square-foot supermarket on the 13-acre site across from Baldwin High School in Wailuku. This newest store will increase Safeway’s presence on Maui and complement its other stores located in Kahului, Lahaina, and Kihei.
“We are very excited to partner with HRT Ltd., and The Harry and Jeannette Weinberg Trust on this project and to serve as the anchor tenant,” said Steve Berndt, vice president of Real Estate for Safeway. “This will bring a much-needed supermarket to the residents of the growing Central Maui region.”
Safeway’s expansion to Wailuku comes on the heels of several new projects around the state. Safeway recently held a grand opening for its newest store in Hilo at Makaʻala Center (in a joint development with Target) and is currently building a new store in urban Honolulu at the site of the former Schuman Carriage auto dealership. In addition, plans are under way to develop additional stores in Ewa Beach on Oahu and in Lihue, both of which are expected to break ground within the next 12 months.
Like Safeway’s other new Hawaii stores, the Maui Lani store will feature the company’s “Lifestyle” format with its own prepared food offerings – including sushi, signature sandwiches and hot soups – in a warm, inviting environment that highlights the fresh, high-quality products and proprietary brands.
Safeway hopes to break ground on the project this fall, with construction expected to last approximately 12 months. The grand opening is targeted for Winter 2012.
Wendell Brooks, III, of CB Richard Ellis, has been retained to lease the balance of Maui Lani Center. “This is a great location,” said Brooks. “We’re excited about finding the right mix of tenants who will meet the needs of this growing community,” he said.
About Safeway
Safeway, Inc. is a Fortune 100 company and one of the largest food and drug retailers in North America based on sales. The company operates 1,694 stores in the United States and Canada and had annual sales of $41 billion in 2010. The company’s common stock is traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol SWY.