The LDS Church buys old Kam Drive-In lot for $60M

AIEA, Hawaii (KHON2) — The old Kam Drive-In lot sat untouched for decades, but that is about to change.

A multi-million dollar purchase by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is giving the property new life and the community is watching closely.

Public records show the LDS Church purchased the 14-acre lot off Kamehameha Highway for $60 million in early September. The neighborhood board chair said he hopes the site of the former drive-in theater could see new life.

“Excitement, Right? So we’re really look forward to, having this place get revitalized. I mean, take a look at it now. Take a look at what’s happened,” said Aiea Neighborhood Board chair Stephen Wood.

The site has been an eyesore and a headache for area residents for years.

“You do have a tendency to have a lot of crime, drug use and these kind of things that occur,” Wood said.

Plans for a developer to turn the area into a mixed-use space fell through during the pandemic.

“With housing and shops and I think there was going to be convenience stores and these kind of things and then COVID occurred and the financing just got through the floor. Interest rates went up and so that’s why five years later, it still looks the same as it did back then,” Wood said.

The neighborhood board has heard complaints for years and said there are several holes in the fencing all around the perimeter of the property which attracts unwanted guests.

“There’s other holes in the fences around this area and so they get access to the property that way, you know, we have HPD in and take, you know, kindly remove them,” Wood said. “It’s an ongoing effort and it just, it takes a lot of vigilance and persistence to keep it clean.”

A Church spokesman said he is working to get information about plans for the site, Councilmember Radiant Cordero confirmed to KHON2 that she is also arranging a meeting with church officials in the near future.

The theater and swap meet are gone but there is finally hope for a future when families use the space again.

“We’re really excited as a community to have this happen,” Wood said. “Hopefully with this purchase, we’ll have that back again. Right? We’ll have families being able to, you know, move back in, be able to utilize this property for whatever purpose that might be.”