The number one question we receive as agents from clients is, where is the best place to live on the island? The answer, in my opinion, is Ewa Beach. In years past, Ewa Beach used to have a not-so-great connotation, but that has all changed years ago. It’s always amazing to me when you have locals that have lived on the island for years but have not gone back to Ewa Beach lately and watching their amazement of what transpired. The area was lacking in the past for restaurants, shopping, medical, ease of roadways, but that has all changed. There has been talk for years of Kapolei/Ewa Beach being the second city and it really hasn’t happened, but now the change has finally arrived.
The area has welcomed the new shopping center Kamakana at Ali’i. The mall has brought anchors such as Sephora and Macy’s along with many boutique shops. The new state of the art movie theater, Olino by Consolidated, with reclining leather chairs is a welcome addition to the older outdated theater the area used to have. There is also a flood of new restaurants in the community from Buffalo Wild Wings, Eating House 1849, California Pizza Kitchen, to the newly opened and much anticipated Cheesecake Factory. Great new grocery stores from Safeway. Walgreens Pharmacies, the UPS Store Ewa Beach, and oh course, the Ewa Beach Hawaii Life Office are just a few of the newer commercial business that have opened and more are coming almost daily.
The residential developments in Ewa Beach from Haseko are selling out almost as fast as the sales centers are built. These are new construction homes built fronting the local golf courses, plural, the ocean and townhouses at the entrance to the new Wai Kai Lagoons. The new lagoon project that has already started taking shape is going to be a top of the line, community-centered project reportedly costing over 300 million dollars. The renderings include expanding use of the lagoons, shopping, restaurants, hotels, and eventually condos and homes sites. With the main center of the Hoakalei Country Club and Ernie Els golf course being located on the main road this development is sure to be nothing short of spectacular.
The newly opened Queens West Hospital is expanding as fast as possible. Local doctors and specialist are all flooding to the area in hopes of opening offices to support the bustling community. The hospital has a state of the art ER and now has emergency after-hours child walk-in clinics.
Ko Olina is just down the road and is also in an expansion mode with word of new properties from Atlantis, Waldorf Astoria, and more all planning on building new hotels on the existing lagoons. Permits have been pulled and clearing of older structures has begun. There are some great public, private schools and home of the University of Hawaii-West Oahu campus to help feed the brain and further education. The roadways have been expanded and easy on and off exists are available from multiple spots on the expressway.
So while other areas of the island have been locations that people have gravitated towards the new West side is clearly the sweet spot. Homes are newer, larger, filled with sidewalks and parks, and above all else, a real sense of community.
Nobody can predict the future or has the ability to gauge home appreciation, but there certainly is a large amount of money and development all coming West. With all these companies and developments betting on Ewa Beach and the surrounding areas steady growth has been the new normal for the area. We have seen home prices rise, and there is no reason to believe that this will not continue. If you have not considered West Oahu recently, it really is time to take a second look.
Opal
November 20, 2017
Mr. Lundstrom, to which “not-so-great connotation” are you referring? Are you saying that ‘Ewa Beach became a “real community” only after the homes prices raised, the sidewalks and parks were to your liking, and it was so heavily developed that it’s become unrecognizable?
David Lundstrom
November 20, 2017
Aloha Opal
I understand the conflict and frustration. The developments around the lagoon are owned and operated by Haseko, a Japanese company. I am simply reporting on what is going on and what is planned in the future as conveyed by the developer. As far as the “not so great-connotation” we personally have many friends that have been born and raised on the island that talk about the area and some of the problems it experienced in years past. This is also in reference to the old congestion on Fort Weaver before they widened the road and how long it use to take to get to H-1.
We live and work in Ewa and love the community. My kids have been raised and have gone to school here and yes we may be from the mainland but we feel blessed to live in such a great community and state. When my kids have their friends over it is heart warming to see the diverse ethnicity’s of kids and almost none are from the mainland. The conflicts and struggles are real and I am sympathetic to that point.
As far as a company and personally we do what we can to be a part of the community. We are at Access Surf at White Plains monthly, are involved in beach clean ups and help with local community events and fundraising and other wise whenever possible.
Gary K Lindsey
June 5, 2020
I’m pretty sure my deformed hand from when Russell Gabaylo just had to pick a fight with a haole would not agree with you.