Kapolei Lofts Recognized for Green Building and New Project Excellence with Two NAIOP Hawaii Awards

MultifamilyBiz.com

May 26, 2016

WEST OAHU, HI – International award-winning firm KTGY Architecture + Planning announced that Kapolei Lofts in West Oahu, Hawaii, received two Awards of Excellence during the NAIOP Hawaii’s 19th Annual Kukulu Hale Awards ceremony held recently at the Royal Hawaiian Hotel in Oahu. Developed by Forest City Hawaii and designed by KTGY, Kapolei Lofts won the Green Building Award and New Project Award – Commercial/Other Over 40,000 SF. The NAIOP Hawaii’s Awards of Excellence program recognizes accomplishments in Hawaii’s commercial real estate industry, including recognition for new and renovated commercial and public projects statewide.

With 499 residential rental homes in the heart of Kapolei, Kapolei Lofts offers renters contemporary living with resort-style amenities, including a private clubhouse, cyber café, complimentary Wi-Fi, self-service pet spa and an on-site management team. Other amenities include an expansive pool and sundeck with private cabanas, daybeds and chaise lounges, poolside entertainment lanai, outdoor grilling, and state-of-the-art fitness center with Fitness On Demand. Kapolei Lofts’ Palailai Mall is part of the community parkway that connects residents with walking paths, rock climbing and more.

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Kapolei Lofts is located on 17 acres at the corner of Kapolei Parkway and Wakea Street, across the street from a Foodland Grocery and just a short walk to shopping malls, schools, food spots, and a regional transportation hub. The apartment homes at Kapolei Lofts are contemporary in design, with a host of features including central air conditioning, nine-foot ceilings, walk-in closets, in-suite washer and dryer, and lanais spacious enough for outdoor dining. Kapolei Lofts offers a wide range of unit types and sizes, ranging from one-bedroom apartments to three-bedroom apartment homes – allowing for a diverse range of price points for prospective renters, according to KTGY Associate Principal Nathan Sciarra.

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“The Kapolei Lofts community, a four-block series of three-story walkup apartment buildings, serves as a gateway on the southern end of Palailai Mall, a regional green space, that connects to the Kapolei city center. The layout of the buildings helps define that portion of Palailai Mall and its surrounding streets with a cohesive architectural character,” said Sciarra. “Each of the 14 buildings create a strong corner presence and, along with the clubhouse and Kapolei Lofts’ retail component, promote a mixed-use, pedestrian-friendly community with entry stoops connecting ground floor entrances directly to the sidewalk along the street.”

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Kapolei Lofts was designed and constructed with sustainability in mind. “Forest City had a great vision to create an innovative community with over 6,000 photovoltaic panels that output up to 2.7MW of solar energy providing approximately half of the electricity used by residents,” said KTGY’s Project Director Scott Bryans. “The residents benefit from the renewable energy generated at competitive rates and the developer benefits from the revenue generated by selling the power to the residents. Forest City also partnered with the local utility to provide each unit with a demand response water heater that stores approximately 25% of the equivalent amount of electricity generated by the solar panels.”

According to Bryans, Hawaii’s high energy costs fueled these innovative approaches, which can serve as a sustainable model for future developments here and on the mainland. “The award-winning Kapolei Lofts includes other energy conservation features such as water and energy-efficient appliances and fixtures, electric vehicle charging stations for residents, and the use of recycled water to irrigate native plants and other landscaping,” Bryans added.