Target Corp. is hoping to blend into the Kailua community.
The Minneapolis-based retailer, which unveiled its 130,000-square-foot Windward Oahu store to reporters Monday, has already put up signs and displays with shelves ready to be filled with its typical merchandise as well as products from 30 different local vendors. It received its first shipment Sunday night.
The retailer is preparing to open its long-awaited store March 4 stocked with local Hawaiian and Asian foods like laulau, kalua pig, fishcake, Kona coffee and Hawaiian salt. University of Hawaii fan apparel also has its own prominent display.
Target might fill the gap for many Windward Oahu residents who lamented the closure of Don Quijote, particularly for its Asian products and other local foods.
"We definitely seek after local vendors more than a mainland store," said Kailua store manager Drew Santos while giving a tour of the new store. "Whether it’s our dry goods such as our Asian aisle all the way to our frozen department and then in our grocery department … the store has a wide assortment of local products."
The store at 345 Hahani St., originally scheduled to open in July 2012, has met opposition from a vocal group of residents who fear the big-box retailer will change Kailua’s small-town charm, bring more people into the quiet neighborhood and cause further traffic congestion.
"I just don’t want small-town Kailua to change, and it’s obviously changing, we can’t help it," said Gina Carnazzo, 51, who rode her bike to Longs Drugs across from the new store. However, she added, "I know that I’ll shop there. Of course I will, because I’m not going to spend gas money to go to the other side."
Others, like Justine Carrico, were enthusiastic about the new addition to the town’s retail landscape.
"I’m actually excited," said Carrico, who was shopping at Longs with her daughter Isabella, 8, and son Ben, 11. "I’m a big Target fan. I’m excited that it’s right around the corner from where I live. It’s just nice to have something new in Kailua."
She added that it also creates a lot of jobs for area residents looking to stay close to home. Target is hiring up to 300 workers for the location and has tried to incorporate cultural aspects into the store’s design, Santos said.
Target has added rock walls into the exterior design as well as trellises; cultural mosaics depicting kalo, fish and trees; "lots of bike racks"; and an outdoor seating area for the walking community.
In an effort to address traffic concerns, the retailer invested in a new traffic light in front of the property and donated a portion of its land for a right-hand turn lane, Santos said. Traffic lights on Hahani Street have been linked to allow traffic to run more smoothly.
"We’re really looking to do the right thing for the community," he added. A Target spokeswoman wouldn’t say how much the company has invested in the Kailua project.
Karl Sinclair, 59, also was happy about the new addition to the community.
"To me Kailua in general it’s getting really nice … although I am concerned about the traffic," he said. "I wouldn’t want it to get any more crowded. I don’t mind the growth so far, but I wouldn’t want it to get like the other side of the island where you can’t get in and out. It’s kind of borderline right now."
