Ilikai Hotel in Waikiki is set to reopen after abrupt closure

The Illikai Hotel, the iconic landmark on Waikiki that closed abruptly last week, will reopen “as soon as practically possible”  iStar Financial Inc., a New York-based development company, said in a statement.

No target date was given for the reopening.

iStar said its subsidiary, SFI Ilikai Property Owner, plans to reopen the Y-shaped Ilikai with a new management team now that local union members have ratified a new agreement that “provides for improved operational efficiencies.”

The 30-story hotel was called Oahu’s first luxury high-rise when it opened in 1964.  It gained fame in the late ’60s when it was featured in an opening sequence of “Hawaii Five-O“, a TV cop show that ran from 1968 until 1980.

“We are pleased that this new agreement will allow all of us to move forward,” said Andrew G. Backman, iStar Financial’s senior vice president of investor relations and marketing.  “We believe in Hawaii and recognize the importance of this iconic property to the community. We would like to extend our appreciation and say thank you to the union for their cooperation.”

The Ilikai has 203 hotel rooms, plus condos, timeshares and retail space. Non-hotel parts of the property were not affected by the closure.

— Rosemary McClure / Special to The Times

[Photo: Ilikai Hotel, at the Waikiki Beach gateway and overlooking the Ala Wai Yacht Harbor. Credit: Courtesy of Ilikai Hotel]

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This entry was posted on Thursday, July 16, 2009 at 4:41 pm by Catharine Hamm and is filed under Hawaii, Hotels, News, Tips & Advice, Oahu. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a comment, or trackback from your own site.