Grant is one of at least 17 Arizona residents who have snapped up lots in an expansive housing development being built by Scottsdale-based firm DMB Associates on the island of Kauai.
It’s an unique opportunity to own land in an island setting with the benefits and security of being on United States soil and to be a part of a project of this magnitude, Grant said.
“There just aren’t going to be that many of them,” he said. “They’re very, very difficult to permit and process and develop, ultimately.”
Situated on 1,000 acres of former sugarcane farmland, the luxury community of Kukui’ula will have up to 1,500 homes, a resort and golf course, a five-star hotel, cafes, shops and galleries.
DMB is partnering on the project with Alexander & Baldwin, one of Hawaii’s largest land owners. The development has been roughly 20 years in the making, given its magnitude and the many cultural and environmental studies of the land that were done, said Richard Holtzman, president of DMB affiliate Kukui’ula Development Co. Alexander & Baldwin started the process in the late 1980s, but plans were halted after a hurricane struck in 1992.
When the firm restarted plans, it brought on DMB, known in Arizona for Scottsdale’s high-end DC Ranch and other master-planned communities. DMB is currently working on plans to develop the 3,200-acre Mesa Proving Ground near Williams Gateway Airport.
At least 66 home sites — worth more than $85 million — have sold in the Hawaiian development. Houses range from custom homes on hillsides to smaller, plantation-style cottages.
The community is primarily aimed at buyers of second and third homes who are looking for a place where friends and multiple generations of family members can get together, Holtzman said.
“It’s a great place for the family to come as a group,” he said.
Grant, who also owns a home in DMB’s DC Ranch, bought a 1/2-acre lot in Kukui’ula in partnership with his brother for $1.1 million.
The 54-year-old said his family is getting larger, and he sees the future home as a place his children and possible grandchildren can go.
His family has already taken advantage of the community’s “lifestyle” team of island guides and athletes, which shows potential buyers different facets of the island.
“When you go into a culture like a Hawaiian culture, it’s so rich and diverse,” Grant said. “All the recreational opportunities are just incredible here.”
Over the past couple of years, the project’s developers have felt the impact of the housing crisis, though it hasn’t had as big an impact as elsewhere in the country, Holtzman said. Higher-end clientele haven’t been as affected, he said.
“But there’s a little bit of a wait-and-see or pause going on just to see how this plays out,” he said.
Still, construction on roads, utilities and other infrastructure is under way.
The community’s amenities, such as the roughly $100 million club and hotel, will open up in 2010, with homes likely being sold through 2017, Holtzman said.
“This is a large, long-term project,” he said.
Roughly $85 million will be spent on landscaping, including the planting of 10,000 native Hawaiian trees.
A farm will be used to grow vegetables served in restaurants there, and residents will be able to have gardening plots, Holtzman said.
“Kauai is called the garden island because it’s just the most lush,” he said. “We’ve decided just to really follow that lead.”
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