Plans are in the works for a waterfront retail, dining, and entertainment center in Ewa Beach.

Haseko Development plans to build the 215,000-square-foot complex at its Hoakalei property.

Wai Kai at Hoakalei would include more than 110 retail establishments, including nearly two dozen restaurants and cafes, and a collection of shops and entertainment venues that overlook the resort’s 52-acre recreational lagoon. There are also plans for a 10,000-square-foot specialty market and a 15,000-square-foot health club and spa.

“Our largest so-called anchors will be our signature buildings, which are actually spoken for. Three of the four signature restaurant buildings are going to some very renowned chefs that everybody will recognize,” said Lawrence Caster, director of retail development for Haseko. “Then we have a lot of smaller shop spaces. We have a specialty food market at the front of the project, which I think everybody will love and will take advantage of a lot of produce being grown locally in the Ewa area, and so I think it will lend itself both to our local residents, and the community that surrounds it.”

Haseko says its retail plan combines a variety of architectural styles in a garden-like environment, complete with water gardens, a boardwalk lined with shops and cafes, a multi-level outdoor dining terrace, and a 10,000-square-foot rooftop garden.

“Being able to get into the water and also go then get out of the water and go get something to eat is really going to be unique and people are going to love it,” Caster said.

Haseko says the project will boost Hawaii’s economy even before it’s built.

“Of course it starts with the construction jobs. So we will be starting the grading of the project within the next three to four months, subject to getting our grading plans approved,” Caster said. “We anticipate then a 12- to 18-month construction duration which, of course, there’s a lot of jobs associated with that, and then once the project opens, of course there’s just a lot of retail jobs that are available for people in Hawaii.”

If all goes well, Haseko says it plans to open by the end of 2019 or 2020.

Once complete, Wai Kai will be the centerpiece of Hoakalei Resort, which includes the 18-hole Ernie Els-designed golf course at Hoakalei Country Club, up to 950 visitor accommodation units, and more than 2,200 resort residences.