Starwood To Bring Timeshare To North Shore

Leaders of Starwood Vacation Ownership (SVO), the timeshare division of Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc., took a first step Tuesday to becoming a Kaua‘i timeshare presence with a groundbreaking ceremony on 18.5 acres of land at Princeville.

This project will be company leaders' third timeshare entity in Hawai‘i. Starwood officials earlier announced plans for a 258-unit development in Maui, adjacent to their 280-unit Westin Ka‘anapali Ocean Resort Villas.

The ceremony for their newest Hawai‘i resort, The Westin Princeville Ocean Resort Villas, came several days after a groundbreaking ceremony at the $115 million Ka‘iulani of Princeville, a 77-unit development located on a bluff with expansive and dramatic views of the Pacific Ocean.

David Matheson, spokesperson for SVO, said no interval prices have been set for the timeshare units.

"There will be no sales for a couple of months," he said, adding that Hawai‘i is a very good location for a timeshare product.

He said all three were built for timeshare. However, in the course of the sales, some of the inventory will be used for transient guests. He said this is typical for a new resort.

He said the percentage of timeshare to other usage would depend upon emerging buyer choices.

Matheson said the approval of the project required a Class IV use permit. He said this was an approximately-two-year process which culminated in December 2004, after a series of public hearings. The last resulted in county Planning Commission approval of the permit, he said. "We are now in the final stages of processing the customary construction permits," Matheson said.

"We have not yet set prices for timeshare intervals or rentals," Matheson said.

The mixed-use resort (time-shares and rentals) includes a two-story clubhouse and seven two- and three-story guest buildings, with 179 timeshare villas and six hotel units.

The first units are scheduled to open in June 2007.

A spokesperson in the county Planning Department confirmed that the project received full approval from the Planning Commission.

"Starwood Vacation Ownership has a long and positive history in Hawai‘i, and we continue to build a strong relationship with our neighbors in Hawai‘i," said Raymond L. "Rip" Gellein, Jr., chief executive officer of Starwood Vacation Ownership, Inc.

"The Princeville community is one of the most storied and respected in all of Hawai‘i, and we are excited to be a part of its future with the first Westin-branded timeshare in Kaua‘i."

Kahu Nani Hill presided over a traditional ground-blessing ceremony held prior to breaking ground on the new resort.

Matheson said he did not have specific figures as to how many people might be employed.

Findings from the 2003 Hawaii Timeshare Industry Overview and Economic Impact Analysis Prepared by KPMG, LLP with the Assistance of SMS Research in a survey for the American Resort Development Association (ARDA) concluded:



Hawai‘i's vacation-ownership inventory has increased dramatically. Since 1999, Hawai‘i's timeshare-unit inventory has grown by nearly 1,100 units, or more than 23 percent, to 5,666 units;


Timeshare is aiding a growing diversification of Hawai‘i's visitor industry. Timeshare accommodations are equivalent to 8 percent of the state's 71,000 visitor units (compared to about 6.5 percent in 2000);


More-even distribution of new timeshare projects on all four major islands. The recent growth of the state's inventory has resulted in new resorts translating to roughly comparable market shares of 18 percent (23 percent for the City and County of Honolulu and Hawai‘i county, and 28 percent to 33 percent for Kaua‘i and Maui counties).

More than 2,500 new units are currently proposed and due to be delivered in the next five to 10 years.

Timesharing in Hawai‘i is a half-billion-dollar industry. Total timeshare sales in 2003 were an estimated $538.9 million, with approximately 18,200 intervals sold (average price of $27,200).

The proportion of California owners has declined, while the proportion of owners from other regions of the country have increased, according to the KPMG survey.

Also participating in the ceremonies were Kelly Hoen, general manager of the Starwood-managed Princeville Resort (hotel), and Keith Vieira, senior vice president and director of operations, Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc.

On behalf of SVO, Serge Rivera, president and managing director of real estate development, presented a check to leaders of the Kauai Taro Growers Association, in commemoration of the blessing of the new project.

"We're very pleased to have Starwood Vacation Ownership become a member of the Kaua‘i community. The project will bring valuable jobs and revenue to the island, along with enhancing our tourist industry," said Mayor Bryan J. Baptiste.