Hilton Doubles Estimate Of Mold Cleanup Cost

October 23, 2002

(Honolulu-AP) -- Hilton Hotels Corporation says that the cost of cleaning up the mold at its Kalia Tower in Waikiki will be twice what it previously estimated. Hilton also says the 453 guest rooms at the Hilton Hawaiian Village tower will remain closed until next spring.

Hotel officials say it's going to cost about 20 million dollars now to clean up the mold growth at the tower. That's double the previous estimate of 10 million dollars.

Hilton corporate executive Marc Grossman says that while the company still must figure out the cause of the mold, it knows enough to say that it can anticipate opening Kalia Tower in some eight months.

Hilton opened the 95 million dollar Kalia Tower last year as a symbol of a revitalized Waikiki. The hotel closed guest rooms as mold was discovered earlier this year, but the finding wasn't announced publicly until the tower was closed July 24th.