PO‘IPU —General Manager Chris Steuri turned out the lights for the last time in February 1993. He opened the doors for the first time Tuesday morning as the Ko‘a Kea Hotel & Resort made its debut to the visitor industry
PO‘IPU —General Manager Chris Steuri turned out the lights for the last time in February 1993.
He opened the doors for the first time Tuesday morning as the Ko‘a Kea Hotel & Resort made its debut to the visitor industry following a multi-million dollar reconstruction.
That reconstruction was due in part to the destruction the former Waiohai Po‘ipu Beach Hotel suffered when the winds of Hurricane Iniki blew through the island in September 1992.
Steuri had the task of shutting down the property following that storm.
“Stephanie (his daughter) was on her way and I needed a job,” Steuri said. “When I shut the lights for the final time at the Waiohai Po‘ipu Beach Hotel, I never dreamed that I would be the guy opening the doors to this new hotel.”
Using the footprint of the former Po‘ipu Beach Hotel, Ko‘a Kea is designed for the ultimate boutique luxury experience, offering 121 redesigned guestrooms and suites as well as a new restaurant, Red Salt, and a luxury spa facility, states a press release from Victoria King Public Relations, agent for Ko‘a Kea.
Steuri is not the only one who has links to the new hotel.
“We have a lot of good people that bring a lot of visitor industry experience,” said Danny Aki, the Human Resources director for Ko‘a Kea. “Among the 50 employees we have on staff, there are many who worked at the Po‘ipu Beach Hotel.”
Sharolyn Kawakami was at the front desk when the Po‘ipu Beach Hotel closed, and on Tuesday was busy working with the staff at the Guest Services desk.
Aki said in addition to Kawakami, Sandy Alayvilla and Elmer Cabulisan are some of the other employees now at the Ko‘a Kea that worked at the Po‘ipu Beach Hotel.
“As the business expands, we plan to add more people,” Aki said. “The good thing about Ko‘a Kea is that of the current staff, 99 percent of the staff is on a full-time status.”
The concept of a coastal refuge inspired by the essence and landscape of Hawai‘i was done by designer Anita Brooks whose credits include the Four Seasons Hotel in Las Vegas and the Red Rock Hotel and Casino and ties in with the hotel’s proximity to the Pacific Ocean where a playful monk seal sought a sun bath near the shadow of one of the five wings on the property.
“We were here in 1973 to celebrate our honeymoon,” said Janice Vermeer of Oregon, currently visiting the island. “We’ve been coming here for the past 10 years and every year we would see this place and say, ‘It’s so sad.’ … It’s nice to see that it’s finally open.”
Brooks blended flavors of earth and sea to transform the boutique property into a strikingly modern hotel with a playful yet sophisticated atmosphere. That theme is carried into the artwork on one of the walls of Red Salt paying tribute to the ala‘e salt that provides the namesake of the hotel’s restaurant.
Executive Chef Ronnie Sanchez, previously of the three-star Michelin rated El Bulli in Spain, heads up the culinary staff of the restaurant that Steuri said offers an area where people can enjoy small gatherings like birthday parties.
George Costa, director of the county’s Office of Economic Development, said he started his management training at the Po‘ipu Beach Hotel, and on the opening, said it was nice to see one of the two closed hotels after Iniki rejoining the visitor industry.
Coco Palms, the other hotel that has remained closed since Iniki, was on the county Planning Commission agenda Tuesday asking for an extension on their permits. See the complete story in an upcoming edition of The Garden Island.
In a message from Kaua‘i Mayor Bernard Carvalho Jr., Costa said “Ko‘a Kea” translates to mean white coral, and the opening of the hotel is a tribute to the life-giving power of the coral reef. He expressed his pleasure at how the workers retained the former railings of the Po‘ipu Beach Hotel and incorporated it into the new design.
“This is one of the last hotels to reopen after Hurricane Iniki and is a tribute to the enduring spirit of Kaua‘i’s people,” Costa said.
Sue Kanoho, director of the Kaua‘i Visitors Bureau, was also pleased to see the hotel reopen, noting that her son learned to swim in a tidal area just outside the former Po‘ipu Beach Hotel and they would often look at the forlorn hulk wondering when it would be back to its splendor.
She was admiring one of the 121 rooms that was open for inspection.
To celebrate the opening, the hotel is offering two introductory packages: The “Isle See You at Po‘ipu” offering a reduced nightly rate of $299 over its regular $499 in a Garden View room; and the “Room with a View” package which offers an upgrade at the time of booking from Garden View Room to Partial Ocean View, or Partial Ocean View to Ocean View when booked at regular rates.
“We have six guests checking in this afternoon,” Steuri said. “It looks like we’re off to a good start.”
These offers are good through Dec. 18. For more information, visit www.koakea.com or call (877) 806-2288.
