The city has sold two former warehouse properties in Manana for about $24 million in deals that will bring new retail and commercial development to the Pearl City area and help Hono-olulu pay a legal settlement related to preserving East O'ahu's Ka Iwi Coast.

Robertson Properties Group recently bought one parcel for $19 million — a 13.5-acre site across from where a Wal-Mart store is being built — and plans to build a shopping center, according to more than one person who is familiar with Robertson's plan.

An official with Robertson, the California-based real estate development affiliate of Consolidated Theatres' parent company, could not be reached for comment about its development plan and timetable.

Colliers Monroe Friedlander, a local commercial real estate firm that represented the city in the sale, suggested in marketing materials that 155,000 square feet of retail space with parking could be built on the site, which fronts Kuala Street across from Wal-Mart.

The other city property, a 2-acre parcel next to the Robertson site and a park, was bought by Illinois-based self-storage firm The Lock Up for $4.7 million, according to Steve Sofos of Sofos Realty Corp., which represented the city in the sale.

Lock Up, a company with about 25 facilities on the Mainland, plans to build a storage facility this summer and open in the fall, Sofos said.

Albert Fukushima, chairman of the Pearl City neighborhood board, said it's hard to predict community response to the development plans without knowing details, though he shares some community concerns about increasing traffic.

The area is attracting greater numbers of consumers as retailers including Home Depot and Pier 1 have flocked to the neighborhood in recent years.

The newest additions will be Wal-Mart, which is scheduled to open around the end of the month, and a combination CompUSA/Good Guys store later this year at the maturing Pearl Highlands Center anchored by Sam's Club and Regal Cinemas.

Proceeds from the city's land sales will go to pay Hawai'i's largest private landowner, Kamehameha Schools, and developer Maunalua Associates for blocking development on the Ka Iwi Coast near Sandy Beach.

The city in the 1980s fought to prevent hotel, golf course and condominium development on the Kamehameha Schools land, eventually blocking development by rezoning the property. The trust and the developer sued and prevailed in court.

But before a 2002 trial to determine damages that the city feared could be as high as $120 million, a settlement was reached.

The state helped resolve the dispute by purchasing roughly 300 acres between Sandy Beach and Makapu'u from the trust for $12.8 million.

Under the city settlement, the trust and developer agreed to give the city 30 acres across from Sandy Beach and receive $5.4 million plus an estimated $60 million to $70 million in proceeds from the city selling about 50 acres at Manana.

The Manana parcels for sale represented a little less than half of a 124-acre former military warehouse complex that the city bought for $109 million from the Navy in 1994 with the thought to develop the property for city and commercial uses.

In 2004 the city sold 20 Manana acres to Wal-Mart for $18 million that went to the settlement. Last year, the city hired brokers to sell four remaining parcels comprising almost 30 acres.

After the two recent sales, two 6.7-acre parcels remain available with asking prices of about $12 million each. Colliers Monroe Friedlander and Sofos Realty are soliciting buyers for the parcels.

Reach Andrew Gomes at agomes@honoluluadvertiser.com.