Gateway Towers: New 'ultra luxury' apartments in Hawaii to court top end buyers

 The island of Oahu in the Hawaiian archipelago is known as “the gathering place”. Snap up one of the ultra-luxury apartments in a new coastal development between downtown Honolulu and Waikiki and don’t be surprised if your home swiftly becomes a gathering place for friends, family members and freeloaders eager to drink in the dramatic views and high-end style.

Gateway Towers is made up of two high-rise residential buildings on the waterfront at the heart of Ward Village, a 24 hectare mixed-use development in the Kaka’ako neighbourhood from Texas-based property powerhouse The Howard Hughes Corporation.

Pritzker Prize-winning American architect Richard Meier’s firm designed the pair of towers. One is shaped like a blade, the other like a cylinder. Both make liberal use of Meier’s signature shade: white.

The thin, 36-storey Blade is aligned with the modern high-rises of downtown Honolulu. Its form rotates relative to the waterfront when approaching from the marina and Ala Moana Boulevard, the eastern stretch of the main east-west highway on Oahu. The 29-storey Cylinder building has an axis co-ordinated with the Blade but provides a counterpoint to the nearby low-rise Gateway Villas and Townhouses.

Between them, the two towers will house nearly 240 sumptuous residences. Large sheets of glass on the buildings’ exteriors are designed to take advantage of the quality and quantity of Hawaiian sunshine. Not only will this produce a dramatic effect on the outside of the building; it will also provide panoramic views of the striking volcanic landscape, shimmering ocean and ever-changing cloud formations swept along by Hawaii’s trade winds.

Residents will have access to private yoga rooms, fitness centres with ocean views, sprawling public living rooms, infinity-edged pools, lap pools, outdoor dining pavilions, screening rooms and wine cellars – complete with tasting rooms. There’s even a dog park.

Homes currently on the market include a 239-square-metre three-bedroom apartment with views of Diamond Head listed for $US6.857 million ($9.028 million) and a two-bedroom 185-square-metre unit for $US4.1 million. The construction timeline for Gateway Towers is yet to be finalised.

Ward Village will bring more than 4000 new homes to the island in six projects, including three mixed-use residential towers currently under construction.

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The first completed building, Waiea, was designed by Vancouver-based architect James K.M. Cheng and includes a Nobu restaurant on the ground floor. Almost all the 175 residences have sold but there are still two penthouses on the market: a 36th-floor penthouse listed at $US36 million and a 35th-floor penthouse with an asking price of $US35 million. Another building, Ke Kilohana, will deliver housing targeted exclusively for the local residents.

Nick Vanderboom, executive vice-president, development for The Howard Hughes Corporation, says Ward Village is creating a new community in the heart of Honolulu unlike anything Hawaii has seen before.

“New homes, shops and parks designed by world-renowned architects create an unparalleled experience for guests and residents,” Vanderboom says. “Our vision for Ward Village is to create a true live, work and play destination that is exceptional from the ground up.”

The community will have access to a new Whole Foods Market supermarket, a 1.61-hectare park, 160-screen movie theatre and a variety of dining options.

Between 2008 and 2014, Hawaii had the lowest amount of new housing supply delivered on Oahu relative to population since World War II. New projects released during the past few years have absorbed much of the demand in the luxury end of the market. According to the developer, recent demand has been stronger for properties between $US1 million and $US2 million.