It’s the end of an era in Ward Village, Howard Hughes’ 60-acre master-planned community located between Downtown and Waikīkī, as developers move forward with plans to bring more residences to the community.
Ward Centre, which opened in 1982 and served the community for more than four decades, officially closed its doors to the public on June 30. Although a timeline has not yet been finalized, sources say that demolition and redevelopment work at the site is expected to begin in the third quarter of the year.
The demolition will clear the way for two luxury towers planned at the site: Melia Ward Village and ‘Ilima Ward Village.
“We have a fond aloha for Ward Centre and its important role in the history of our neighborhood,” Doug Johnstone, president of Hawai‘i Region and national condominium development at Howard Hughes Communities, said in a statement provided to Aloha State Daily. “As plans move forward for redevelopment on the site, we look forward to announcing details about the next phase, which will deliver additional retail, open space and a new public park, as well as hundreds of new homes, further enhancing the connected, walkable neighborhood experience at Ward Village while reflecting its long-term vision as a master-planned community.”
Three of the center’s tenants are relocating within Ward Village: Johnny’s Island Dog Spa and Sweat + Soul are moving to 320 Ward Ave., while Kamitoku Ramen is moving to the former Scratch Kitchen space in South Shore Market. You can read more about Kamitoku Ramen here.
Ali‘i Coffee — which closed its Ward Centre and downtown Honolulu locations — recently opened in Ala Moana Center.
As previously reported, Ward Village sold out its first eight mixed-use residential towers: Waiea, Anaha, Ae‘o, Ke Kilohana, ‘A‘ali‘i, Kō‘ula, Victoria Place and Ulana Ward Village.
In addition to ‘Ilima and Melia, new residential buildings in development or under construction include Kalae and The Launiu Ward Village.
Ulana Ward Village opened in November 2025, offering 697 workforce housing units.
The Park Ward Village opened in June, bringing another another 546 studio, one-, two- and three-bedroom homes and more than 30,000 square feet of retail and dining space to Kaka‘ako. It was 97% pre-sold when it was completed, the developer said at that time.
Ward Village marked a record year in 2025, with momentum driven by the launch of Melia Ward Village and ‘Ilima Ward Village earlier in the year.
In Hawai‘i last year, Howard Hughes contracted to sell 287 condos, which accounted for roughly $1.6 billion in future revenue, according to a fourth-quarter earnings report from Howard Hughes Holdings.
Of those, 220 units at Melia and ‘Ilima, and 63 units at The Launiu were contracted, the report, published earlier this year, noted. At year-end, the predevelopment condos of Melia and ‘Ilima were 60% pre-sold and The Launiu was 71% pre-sold. Meanwhile, Kalae was 93% sold.
By the end of 2025, Melia and ‘Ilima were about 60% pre-sold.
The 33-story ‘Ilima will have 148 homes while Melia, its 35-story companion, will offer 221 residences. Together, the projects will add about 20,000 square feet of ground-floor commercial and retail space, along with a public park.
Ward Village also hit a number of other milestones in 2025.
Ka La‘i o Kukuluāe‘o Park opened in September of last year and the makai phase of Victoria Ward Park opened earlier that February. The mauka side of the park opened a year later in February 2026.
The Launiu, Ward Village’s 11th residential tower, broke ground in October 2025.
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Stephanie Salmons can be reached at stephanie@alohastatedaily.com.
