Between severe weather hitting the islands that make up Hawaii and high prices in an economic environment that leaves many watching their discretionary spending more carefully, traveler numbers to the state have declined throughout 2026.
According to numbers released by the state’s Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism, the 772,039 visitors who came to the state in August 2026 represent a 5.6% decrease from the same month a year ago. The $1.59 billion they spent amounts to a 9.7% decrease.
As a result, a number of businesses in the tourism industry have faced a challenging year. Still others have had challenges going back years.
Hawaii Ocean Plaza files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy
Hawaii Ocean Plaza filed for voluntary Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, listing between $10 and $50 million in liabilities and the same amount in assets, a case filed in California Central Bankruptcy Court revealed.
Hawaii Ocean Plaza is the company behind the 40-story mixed-use development project on Kapiolani Boulevard next to the large Ala Moana Center outdoor shopping mall in Honolulu. The building was envisioned as having 175 hotel rooms and 216 residential units.
Related: Former operator of Sheraton hotel files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy
Plans for the new tower presented by developer Johnson Fang were approved by the City and County of Honolulu in 2017, but construction stalled over the years amid mounting debt and lapsed permits, KITV4 reported.
By 2023, foreign investors who had initially backed the project began filing lawsuits over the lack of progress.
Some of these investors claimed they were promised visas in exchange for pumping more than $1 million into the project, KITV4 noted. Yet overgrown weeds, broken fencing, ripped tarp, and general disarray were observed at the site where construction was supposed to begin.
“When these investors invested either half a million or a million dollars into this EB 5 [immigration investment] program, the understanding was that the developer would build the project and they would hire the lawyers,” wrote Andrew Daisuke Stewart, the attorney representing Japanese investor Kiyohito Nishibayashi, according to KITV4.
Hawaii Ocean Plaza
What went wrong with the Hawaii Ocean Plaza residential and hotel development project?
As of October 2026, 27 foreign investors are involved in litigation related to the project, an X post from RK Consultants confirmed.
Earlier in October, the Hawaii Supreme Court rejected an investor request for a writ of certiorari, the legal term for a request to have a case sent up from a lower court. This came as multiple interconnected lawsuits from both individual investors and corporate entities accused the company behind the development project of fraud.
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Hawaii Ocean Plaza and Johnson Fang could not immediately be reached for comment on the bankruptcy filing. Judge Neil W. Bason is currently listed as assigned to the case.
The total number of creditors is listed as between 1 and 49. Additional details regarding the bankruptcy and the private company’s financial situation have not been made public.
Despite being a single-entity company that’s building in Hawaii, Hawaii Ocean Plaza is registered in Alhambra, California.
The lot, where the development project is currently listed as “permanently closed” on Google, is in a prime real estate area of Honolulu.
Related: Hotel minutes from Disneyland shuts in Chapter 11 bankruptcy