First there was Sadie Thompson Inn, then Sadie’s by the Sea, and next year we’ll have Sadie’s Airport Lodge.
It’s a 30-room lodge, belonging to Dateline Industries, now under construction on the Airport Road. Construction began on January 2 this year, and the expected completion date is may next year.
Mr. Tom Drabble says the lodge is being built on just over an acre and a half of land being leased from the family of the late Mrs. Emma Randall.
It will have a free standing Bar & Grill, Rubbles, with a Texas BBQ theme and offering some the popular menu items from the old Rubbles which used to be the Nu’uuli Shopping Center.
The lodge will not have a swimming pool but it will include a workout center.
Drabble says the the project is divided into three phases. The contractor for the foundation was Snow Construction and the second phase, which entails construction of all of the buildings was awarded to Dennis Faumui.
The final phase which is the interior, electrical and plumbing has yet to be bid out.
Finding contractors to build his hotel proved to be a challenge said Drabble because of the many government construction projects going on.
“We have about 30 contractors on island but with government doing so many projects, it was hard to find builders for our project,” said Drabble.
He declined to give the funding source but said it’s a $4.5 million investment.
Drabble says the territory needs more hotel rooms. Currently there are about 150-200 rooms total and he doesn’t believe that’s enough. He feels that if there’s enough hotel accommodations, it will attract more flights and visitors.
KHJ News asked the veteran businessman for his views on the territory’s economy. He said the free money from COVID is drying up, and we have to get used to the way things were three years ago before the flow of COVID funds.
He observed that there’s been no efforts to diversify the economy.
Commenting on tourism, he said the cable car and harbor are sites that are not found in other Pacific islands, and we should use them to entice visitors here.
Dateline Industries has 30 years left on the lease for Sadie’s by the Sea, and Drabble says he’s for selling Sadie’s so that the whole beach front acreage could be leased and developed together with the old Rainmaker hotel site.
He said the remaining years on the last is not long enough to justify investment in rebuilding the hotel, and he thinks the best option is to lease the whole beachfront property to a developer.
