The Queen Theater, a once-beloved 1930s-era landmark in the heart of Kaimuki that fell into dec\u00adades of disrepair, is being readied for sale, city leaders say.<\/p>\n
The historic movie house at 3588 Waialae Ave., closed since 1985, had in recent years become a magnet for trespassing and other illicit and illegal activities.<\/p>\n
Those public safety issues prompted prior action by the Honolulu City Council and city administration to move toward condemning the derelict, privately-owned building.<\/p>\n
But speaking at the
\nApril 15 Kaimuki Neighborhood Board meeting, Council Chair Tommy Waters announced that the theater\u2019s owner, attorney Adoree Yu, \u201cis selling the building.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo anybody out there with $3 (million) to $5 million, and willing to rehab that building, we\u2019re going to do that together \u2014 save it,\u201d said Waters, whose Council District 4 includes Kaimuki. \u201cWe\u2019ve got to save the theater.\u201d<\/p>\n
In a statement after the meeting, Waters clarified that when he spoke to Yu,
\n\u201cI was informed that all
\noptions are being considered for the property, including a disposition-sell.\u201d<\/p>\n
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Still, Waters indicated Kaimuki\u2019s \u201clong history of
\nlocal commerce, steady foot traffic, and neighborhood loyalty\u201d deserved more at that site than just another building.<\/p>\n
\u201cA reactivated Queen Theater could help bring renewed energy to the area by attracting residents and visitors and supporting nearby businesses before and after events,\u201d Waters asserted. \u201cWhatever direction is taken, the future use of the site should reflect the character of the community and provide clear value to the neighborhood.\u201d<\/p>\n
Via email, Council Director and Chief Communications Officer Aron Dote said, \u201cThe owner of the property hasn\u2019t formally listed, but it is listed on Zillow as \u2018off market.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
Yu and her attorney, Ryan Toyomura, declined to comment on the matter.<\/p>\n
Yu previously outlined a three-phase plan to revitalize the Queen Theater property, estimating renovation costs at roughly $800,000. Initial work included painting and implementing safety and security measures to deter trespassing.<\/p>\n
The approximately 10,396-square-foot
\ncommercial parcel, which includes the 850-seat theater, is valued at about $3.31 million, according to the city\u2019s Real Property Assessment Division.<\/p>\n
But in December 2024, the Council, via a resolution advanced by Waters, decided to pursue condemnation of the property, citing safety concerns and the potential to transform the site into a community-centered venue.<\/p>\n
By early 2025, city officials, including city Managing Director Mike Formby, held discussions with Yu in hopes of reaching a \u201cfriendly condemnation\u201d agreement that would allow the city to take control of the site while compensating the owner.<\/p>\n
Kevin Auger, the city Department of Housing and Land Management director, said \u201cthose discussions did not advance toward action due to significant site
\nconstraints.\u201d<\/p>\n
Those issues included
\nenvironmental conditions \u2014 such as asbestos, lead-
\nbased paint, and potential mold \u2014 as well as development limitations such as a lack of parking, no staging area for construction, \u201cand the complexities associated with the building\u2019s historic nature,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Currently, Auger said the city has no plans to block the sale of this private property \u2014 namely, condemning it for the city\u2019s use.<\/p>\n
\u201cAny consideration of acquisition would require a clearly defined public purpose and justification for the use of public resources,\u201d he said. \u201cDHLM remains focused on advancing housing projects on sites that are more feasible for development, and aligned with broader housing and
\ntransit-oriented development priorities.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn this case, the site\u2019s physical and environmental conditions, along with its development limitations, made it difficult to prioritize relative to other opportunities that can more readily deliver affordable housing at scale,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cAgain, a market-driven solution would be the preferred approach,\u201d Auger said. \u201cThere is no justification for the city to intervene in this instance.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Queen Theater, a once-beloved 1930s-era landmark in the heart of Kaimuki that fell into dec\u00adades of disrepair,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":205383,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[37],"tags":[288,32375,9,24,63,122,124,123],"class_list":{"0":"post-205382","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-queens","8":"tag-business","9":"tag-editors","10":"tag-new-york","11":"tag-new-york-city","12":"tag-nyc","13":"tag-queens","14":"tag-queens-headlines","15":"tag-queens-news"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/205382","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=205382"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/205382\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/205383"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=205382"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=205382"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=205382"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}