Kamaaina investor sells Pagoda Hotel to another

A local investment company has bought the 12- story Pagoda Hotel in Honolulu from Hawaii developer Peter Savio.

Rycroft Holdings LLC, a firm led by Robert and Duane Kurisu, bought the hotel at 1525 Rycroft St. last month.

A purchase price was not disclosed for the 199-room hotel, which is on land owned by and leased from Kamehameha Schools.

The new owner plans to have New York-based hotel operator Highgate manage the property starting in April.

“We are honored to carry on the legacy of this historic hotel and its dedicated employees, and excited to partner with Highgate to deliver world-class hospitality with aloha,” Robert Kurisu said in a statement.

Highgate, which operates several Hawaii hotels, including the Alohilani Resort Waikiki Beach and Park Shore Waikiki, said it will provide an opportunity for current Pagoda hotel employees to apply for positions as part of the change.

The Pagoda Hotel was developed in 1964 with a Japanese garden setting and a restaurant surrounded by koi ponds by the late Herbert T. Hayashi of HTH Corp., who is recognized as the first hotelier to build a hotel outside of Waikiki largely for kamaaina customers. The budget-priced hotel is a little under a mile from Waikiki in the Pawaa area.

HTH sold the hotel to Savio in 2010, and the property is managed by Aqua- Aston Hospitality.

Kurisu already owned and operated the restaurant at the hotel with his father, Duane, a local real estate investor.