Don Graham (developer)

Early life

Graham was born on June 14, 1914, in Oakland, California. He received a bachelor's degree from the University of California, Berkeley and began his career as a bond trader.

He enlisted in the United States Army during World War II, serving in an amphibious unit. Graham received two Bronze Star Medals for service at two major battles in the Philippines, the Battle of Leyte and the Invasion of Lingayen Gulf. He was in Tokyo at the time of the Surrender of Japan.

Career

Graham settled permanently in Hawaii after World War II. He was hired in late 1945 by Dillingham Corp, which had been founded by Walter F. Dillingham. Graham soon became the president of Dillingham Corp's subsidiary, Hawaiian Land Corp.

Graham developed and completed a series of major projects throughout Honolulu for Dilligham, including the Ala Moana Hotel and the Ala Moana office building (including "La Ronde", first revolving restaurant in the United States). However, he was best known as the developer and contractor of the Ala Moana Center, which opened in 1959.

The Ala Moana center was constructed on land that had once been swamp. The land had been filled by coral rock from a dredging project initiated by Walter F. Dillingham. Dillingham's son, Lowell Dillingham, announced the project in 1948 and broke ground on the mall in 1957. Critics at the time regarded the Ala Moana Center as a potential failure due to its layout and design which oriented the mall away the Pacific Ocean. Graham, the Ala Moana Center's chief designer, also designed the building with two levels for retail stores and parking, an unusual layout during the 1950s. Graham became the Ala Moana Center's first general manager following the mall's completion.

Graham's project proved to be a huge success which had major implications for shoppers in Honolulu and beyond. The Ala Moana Center shifted the focus of retail in Oahu from downtown Honolulu to the new mall. It has been expanded since its opening to become the largest mall in the United States for decades. Today, the Ala Moana Center is one of the three highest-grossing malls in the United States and is the largest outdoor shopping mall in the country.

Graham remained at the Dillingham Corp for more than 27 years. He left Dillingham and formed new development firms with new business partners. Graham's firms included Mainline Associates, Graham Wong Hastings and Graham Murata Russell, which is now known as GMR LLC. Graham designed and developed numerous other projects throughout Hawaii during his career, including the Coconut Beach Hotel in Kauai, the Maui Marriott Resort in Kaanapali, the Wailupe Peninsula subdivision in East Honolulu and the Discovery Bay condominium in Waikiki. Graham also partnered to develop the Liliha Square Shopping Center, which he sold in the late 1990s to Finance Factors.

He also focused on the creation of affordable housing projects and developments during his later career.

Graham remained active in the GMR LLC firm until two weeks before his death in 2010. He was admitted to Straub Medical Center on August 15, 2010, where he was diagnosed with pneumonia and leukemia. Don Graham died on August 17, 2010, in Honolulu at the age of 96. He was survived by his wife, Kathryn Graham; son, D.H. “Mac” III; daughter, Pattiann Smith; stepdaughter, Sara P. Hewitt; stepson, Breck Perkins; five grandchildren, one great-grandchild, a brother and a sister.