Macy’s Inc. has announced that they will be closing their downtown Honolulu location at Fort Street Mall on February 28, 2013. Macy was the only major department store in downtown Honolulu, leaving many real estate experts wondering what direction the area will take in the coming years. One major challenge for retailers in downtown is the fact that most of the office workers leave by early evening, leaving the streets completely empty. Stephany Sofos, a real estate analyst, commented, “You need more residential (occupancy) to make it a vibrant city that doesn’t roll up their sidewalks at 5 p.m. when everyone goes home from work. That’s why putting in a residential component with office and retail would be the highest and best use because you’d have all moving parts together, people working there, eating there and sleeping there.” Darcy Lampe, a Macy’s store patron, agreed and added, “It’s like a ghost town here on the weekends, But you can see it gets a lot of traffic at lunchtime.”
Source: Honolulu Star Advertiser, 1-4-2013, www.staradvertiser.com
Posted by Jeff Uyemura-Reyes, Broker-in-Charge, Realtor®
Global Executive Realty, LLC
www.myhawaiihomesearch.com
www.myhawaiicondo.com
www.myhawaiidreamhome.com
Posted by Jeff Uyemura-Reyes, Broker-in-Charge, Realtor®
Global Executive Realty, LLC
www.myhawaiihomesearch.com
www.myhawaiicondo.com
www.myhawaiidreamhome.com
