Building Places Where Hawai‘i Gathers
(Partner Content) Michael Young, president and CEO of Albert C. Kobayashi Inc., tackles housing and education projects for Hawai‘i’s future.
(This story is the second in a series HONOLULU Magazine is publishing about the impactful work of Hawai‘i contractors, and how they’re Building for a Better Hawai‘i. The series is a partnership with Pacific Resource Partnership (PRP).)
Some of the most significant places in our lives are built for all of us—the schools where our kids learn, the health care facilities where we’re cared for, and the commercial spaces where neighborhoods take shape. In other words, they’re places built for community.
That’s what motivates Gary Oda, president of Allied Builders System. “Every school, health care center and commercial facility we’ve built is where people gather, children learn, businesses thrive,” he says.
Construction wasn’t where Oda expected his career to lead. “My path into construction was certainly not a straight line,” he says. “My background is actually in accounting and finance.”
“Knowing our efforts have contributed to building a better Hawai‘i is a responsibility and a privilege that keeps us inspired every day.”
Before joining the firm, Oda worked for an international CPA firm and a large British conglomerate—experience that, at first glance, seems worlds away from a construction jobsite. But there was overlap. “What drew me to Allied Builder System was the fact that I could take some of the business principles I’ve learned and apply them to actual, tangible items and help our community and build for Hawai‘i,” he says.
Since taking the helm in 2001, Oda has seen the company complete projects across Hawai‘i that have become part of the fabric of their communities. Over the years, that work has taken many forms. ABS helped bring new life to the beloved Diamond Head Theatre, built a new campus for the Hawaiian Humane Society, and transformed a former downtown building into the AC Hotel. Each project serves a different purpose, but all become part of the places where people live, work, gather, and connect. “Knowing our efforts have contributed to building a better Hawai‘i is a responsibility and a privilege that keeps us inspired every day,” he says.
At ʻŌlauniu, a 9-acre mixed-use project on the site of the former Dillingham Plaza, ABS is helping transform an existing site into something new. The 165,000-square-foot development will bring retail, dining, and open community space to the area, with indigenous cultural stewardship woven into its design. As the project’s contractor, ABS is helping transform an existing site into a place where people can gather, connect, and build community.
“Since 1970, our company has strived to fulfill the values that our founders have instilled in us,” Oda says.
More than 55 years later, though its values remain the same, the company is still able to evolve with the changing times. “We’ve been able to expand our capabilities, technologies, and our project size. We’ve been able to do a lot more difficult and complex projects,” Oda says.
For Oda, growth is not simply about scale—it’s about being trusted with more responsibility for shaping Hawai‘i’s communities. From neighborhood schools and health care facilities to large-scale redevelopments like ʻŌlauniu, ABS’s projects are the everyday infrastructure for the community.
It’s a legacy Oda doesn’t take lightly, and one he sees as fundamentally about people first, buildings second. “What continues to inspire me is that construction is ultimately about teamwork,” he says. “Behind every project ABS delivers is a team of committed people who are solving problems and working together.”
For more information about Building for a Better Hawai‘i, visit the PRP website and follow @prphawaii.
