Shimogawa Scoops

Sears is coming back to Ala Moana Center, public records confirm Thursday. The department store was at one time an anchor store at the state's largest shopping mall until that space in the Ewa wing was purchased and redeveloped by the mall's owner, General Growth Properties Inc. On Thursday, Sears filed an $80,000 building permit with the City and County of Honolulu's Department of Planning and Permitting for its new appliance store at 1555 Kapiolani Blvd. near the former Nordstrom store.

Nirav Modi, an international diamond jewelry company that is headquartered in India, is expanding to Hawaii with a new boutique opening at Ala Moana Center in Honolulu, public documents show. Founded in 2010 by Indian jeweler and billionaire Nirav Modi, the company's jewels have been worn by many celebrities including actress Kate Winslet and Naomi Watts. On Thursday, Nirav Modi filed a $60,000 building permit with Honolulu regulators for its new boutique at the state's largest shopping mall. Nirav Modi currently has stores in India, New York, Hong Kong, London and Macau.

A New York company has purchased nearly 18 acres of vacant agricultural land near Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg's hundreds of acres of oceanfront land on the island of Kauai's North Shore, public records show. Last month, WM Capital Partners LLC's Keala Ranch Ventures LLC purchased the land on Kapuna Road in Kilauea for $2.3 million. The property had been on the market with an asking price of $2.45 million. Carol Orr was the seller. WM Capital provides investment advisory services for its clients in the United States, according to Bloomberg. Zuckerberg purchased hundreds of acres of land in the Kilauea area several years ago, and has plans to build a home for he and his family.

A new cafe is opening at the Aloha Tower Marketplace near Downtown Honolulu, according to public documents. On Thursday, Hawaii Pacific University, which owns the marketplace, filed a $75,000 building permit with the City and County of Honolulu's Department of Planning and Permitting for an "Aloha Tower Marketplace Student Cafe." Linda Miki of Honolulu-based G70, formerly Group 70 International, is listed as the architect for the new cafe, according to the permit. Aloha Tower, which has student dormitories on the second floor, includes such tenants as Nashville, Gordon Biersch, Hooters, Pearl Coffee Hawaii, CrossFit Downtown Honolulu, Barnes & Noble College, Star of Honolulu and Palama Express. The marketplace also is expected to add a student dining facility by Hawaii chef Sam Choy that will be open to the public, as well as Old Spaghetti Factory.

Brookstone, the national specialty retailer of unique and lifestyle products, is opening its second Hawaii store in Waikiki, according to public documents. The New Hampshire-based company already has a store at Ala Moana Center in Honolulu. On Thursday, Brookstone filed a $300,000 building permit with the City and County of Honolulu's Department of Planning and Permitting for a new store at the Saks Fifth Avenue-anchored International Market Place in Waikiki. It once had a store at Ward Village in Kakaako. Brookstone, which was founded in 1965, sells such items as drones, fitness equipment, pillows, smart home and home automation products and massage equipment. It opened its first retail store in 1973 after offering its products in catalogs. The company currently has more than 200 stores throughout the United States and Puerto Rico, mainly in shopping malls, lifestyle centers and airports. Brookstone will join other tenants at the International Market Place including Hanna

A Maui water company is selling 4,620 acres of land to an owner of a Valley Isle construction firm for about $3.4 million, according to public documents filed this week. Wailuku Water Co., which provides water distribution services on Maui, is asking state regulators to approve this proposed transaction. The conservation-zoned land is undeveloped. The water company said it entered into a purchase agreement with Ting Ranch LLC in late November. Duane Ting, who is the president of Maui Master Builders Inc., is a partner of Ting Ranch. Wailuku Water said that the proposed sale is reasonable and in the public interest because the sale would allow the company, which has suffered operating losses, to help pay for its operating and capital expenses. The sale also will not affect the ability of Wailuku Water to continue to provide water distribution services, the company said. Wailuku Water also is in discussions to sell its watershed property as well as rights to the ditches, tunnels,

Panda Express is expanding to Central Oahu with a new location on California Avenue in Wahiawa, according to public documents. On Tuesday, Panda Express filed a $41,000 building permit with city officials for its new restaurant on 609 California Ave. Panda Express has 10 locations on Oahu with another on the way in Kapolei in West Oahu near a Walmart store. The billionaire co-owners of Panda Express have been on quite a real estate buying spree, including the recent purchase of a Waikiki high-rise office tower across from the Hawaii Convention Center. The Cherngs, who founded Panda Express in the early 1980s, have also purchased several residential properties including a beachfront estate in the ritzy Honolulu neighborhood of Kahala.