Developer seeks record $35M for planned Kapiolani penthouse

A new attempt is being made to sell the most expensive condominium in Honolulu ever.

The developer of the planned Mandarin Oriental Hotel and Residences tower announced Thursday that it intends to offer a penthouse for $35 million among 99 residential units that start at $3.5 million.

If such a sale is realized in the building slated to rise immediately Ewa of the Hawai‘i Convention Center just beyond Waikiki, it would top the current record — by more than $10 million.

However, this could be an exceptionally tall order given that past efforts to sell condos in Honolulu for more than $30 million haven’t succeeded.

“I hope they are successful,” said John “Jack” Tyrrell, a veteran local condo broker who estimates that he has sold more than 40 penthouses in Honolulu. “I think it will be a challenge.”

The highest residential condo sale price in Honolulu was $23.5 million paid in December for a 6,273-square-foot Park Lane Ala Moana “grand penthouse” completed on the makai edge of Ala Moana Center in 2017.

Perhaps the most ambitious effort previously was made by the developer of Ward Village, Howard Hughes Corp., which priced a penthouse topping its Waiea tower at $36 million in 2016 as construction on the Kakaako high-rise overlooking Ala Moana Beach Park was nearing completion.

Waiea’s “estate in the sky” features 10,000 square feet of living space and its own rooftop infinity pool. A slightly smaller penthouse one floor below in Waiea was priced at $35 million, and Hughes Corp. offered buyers the opportunity to combine the units if they bought the pair for $71 million. Listings for both units were withdrawn from the market in May.

In another Ward Village tower, Anaha, which was completed in 2017, a grand penthouse with 6,737 square feet of furnished living space and an infinity pool is on the market for $22.8 million.

Tyrrell, president of Jack Tyrrell &Co., said many prospective buyers of ultraluxury penthouses won’t consider such an expensive purchase until the unit is finished, which presents an extra challenge for the Mandarin project.

However, he also said the Mandarin Oriental brand has a strong following in Asia where $100 million condos exist, so this could add to the interest in the Honolulu tower project.

“It only takes one buyer,” he said.

Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group, which operates 32 hotels and seven residential properties around the world, once managed the Kahala hotel under an arrangement that ended in 2006.

Mana‘olana Partners, an affiliate of Los Angeles- based Salem Partners, is the developer of the new Mandarin project, which it describes as “redefining luxury in Honolulu” and becoming the “pinnacle of cosmopolitan living in Hawaii.”

Other descriptions the company is using to entice condo buyers include “rarefied air, for the most discerning few” and “an entirely new breed of Hawaiian vertical living.”

The planned 37-story tower project, previously known as Mana‘olana Place, is designed with 99 residences above 125 hotel rooms.

An initial offering involves 49 residences to be released for sale Oct. 1.

Mana‘olana said the tower will feature two restaurants led by Michelin-star chefs, the largest and most lavish spa on Oahu, spaces designed by internationally renowned designers, retail boutiques and a stunning water feature.

Amenities only for residents are slated to include a pool, spa, Peloton indoor cycling room, exhibition kitchen, karaoke room, theater, wine room, golf simulation room and outdoor lounge spaces with cabanas and fire pits.

“With sales soon to launch, we are thrilled to officially introduce the residences to the public and to be one step closer to bringing one of the world’s most renowned hotel brands back to Honolulu,” James Ratkovich, a Mana­‘olana co-managing partner, said in a statement.

The developer said it expects to start construction in the fall and finish in early 2022.