Henry Kaiser - Hawaii Visionary

Henry Kaiser made great achievements in construction, manufacturing, and healthcare, but Hawaii remembers him best for his creation of what is now the Hilton Hawaiian Village Waikiki Beach Resort and East Oahu's Hawaii Kai Marina. He was enormously successful having started over 29 businesses. In the 1950's he moved to Oahu and paved the way for advancing a new era in Hawaiian development.

The story of Henry Kaiser was one of rags-to-riches. Born in 1889, he spent his formative years working as a laborer on road building jobs. He eventually founded his own road construction company and landed large projects for the Interstate Highway System. Kaiser grew to become one of the largest engineering companies in the US. His ability to manufacture and pour concrete allowed him to be one of 5 construction companies selected to work on the Hoover Dam project. He procured many more public works projects during the Great Depression and expanded into steel, aircraft, and automobile production. Kaiser's companies supplied the materials and machinery that kept America running.

During WW II, Kaiser was commissioned by Roosevelt to help build ships for the war effort. He constructed 4 shipyards in the Bay Area that produced over a thousand ships during the course of the war. At one point, his shipyard was manufacturing a ship a day.

His companies were progressive in providing healthcare for employees. He initiated the first pre-payment health plan in the United States. Today's modern Health Maintenance Organizations (HMO) are still modeled off of his plan. He also built several hospitals and medical centers.

In the early 1950s, Kaiser moved to Hawaii for retirement. Unable to settle down, he saw a vision for Hawaii as a major tourist destination. In much the same way people flocked to Las Vegas and Miami for vacation, he believed Americans would have an appetite for Hawaii as a tropical getaway.

In 1954, Kaiser became one of the largest landholders on Oahu with the purchase of the dilapidated Niumalu Hotel and the 18 acres that surrounded it. The land sits where the Hilton Hawaiian Village is today. The Niumalu Hotel was in such disrepair that it was torn down and replaced with a new, more modern tower. He then created a tropical village on the land with gardens, a tapa room, 3 swimming pools and bungalows. He created a utopian vision of Hawaii - a picture perfect resort - which was eventually named "Kaiser's Hawaiian Village". As the Hawaiian Village grew in popularity, 2 more towers would be constructed over the next 3 years.

He also developed the 5-acre fish pond that fronted the Rainbow Tower, which is today named the "Duke Kahanamoku Lagoon" in recognition of the Olympian who was born nearby. Kaiser started a radio and television station for Hawai then called KHVH (today it is KITV). He used the production facilities to create programming to help promote his resort.

In 1961, Conrad Hilton purchased the Hawaiian Village for $21.5 million - an enormous sum at the time. Today, the Hilton Hawaiian Village retains the spirit and character of Kaiser's vision.

It was nearly impossible for non-Hawaiian companies to get a foothold in Hawaii. The islands had what as considered a protective "oligarchy" named the "Big 5" which held considerable political power over the Territory of Hawaii. The Big Five were Castle & Cooke, Alexander & Baldwin, C. Brewer & Co., American Factors (now Amfac), and Theo H. Davies & Co. These companies evolved from the sugarcane plantation era into major providers of shipping, material, and construction on the islands. They were also the large landholders of Hawaii. Mainland companies that tried to venture into Hawaii were met with resistance from the powerful Big 5 by their political influence and control of Hawaii's infrastructure.

But Kaiser was a powerful force that even the Big 5 couldn't hold back. He circumvented many of the laws to achieve his break into Hawaii. He had the ships to transfer material from the Mainland. He built docks to land his ships. He built the island's 2nd concrete plant to supply his projects. All of this allowed him to create his most significant legacy - Hawaii Kai.

Hawaii Kai was Kaiser's final project. He envisioned the transformation of 6,000 acres of muddy flatlands on East Oahu into Hawaii's first master-planned community with homes along structured water canals and a marina. Hawaii Kai was part of a grand vision to accommodate tourists and Mainland transplants.

The land was leasehold from the Bishop Estate and held by Atherton Richards, who was also a trustee. Richards believed the area known as the "Kuapa Pond" was undevelopable. 3,000 acres of the land would require a herculean engineering feat to develop. The Kuapa Pond consisted of 500 acres of shallow wetlands, from 6 inches to 1 foot deep. When it rained, silt would collect in it. Kaiser sought to transform the area into both dry land for housing and waterways that for boats and water activity. The concept proposed was a $350 million development that could provide 30,000 homes and eventually house up to 75,000 people.

Kaiser brought in heavy equipment and dredged the wetlands to create canals to a depth of 7 feet. Homes were developed along the sides of the channels with docks. The development's grand scale intrigued Islanders who read about its progress in the Star-Advertiser.

The State had strict requirements that the sewage infrastructure must be in place from the beginning to handle the projected capacity of 30,000 homes. Enormous amounts of fresh water were pumped in at huge expense through the system to be in compliance, although there were only a couple hundred homes initially built. Kaiser faced many development challenges along the way, and the Hawaii Kai project was called "Kaiser's Folly" in the press. But construction pressed on and eventually the development infrastructure was in place.

Due to a marketing error, homes initially went on sale for $18,750 and lost money on each unit. The public was also reluctant to purchase a Kaiser built home because of the negative attention. To eliminate the concern, Kaiser contracted with several Mainland sub-developers to build and sell homes.

Kaiser died in 1967 before his Venice-like project was complete. Hawaii Kai ultimately proved to be a financial failure, except for homeowners who came out well because of housing appreciation. Kaiser opened the doors for other Mainland contractors to develop in Hawaii, which in many cases had a negative impact on the Islands. Kaiser was a big thinker - a visionary with a clear focus on developing resorts and communities. Other contractors that followed were not so clear with their visions and many sub-par developments have emerged over the years. However, Ko Olina Resort, Grand Wailea A Waldorf Astoria Resort, and the Hilton Waikoloa Village are shining examples that are inspired from advancements made by Kaiser.