The first master-planned destination resort in Hawaii, Kaanapali occupies twice the area of Waikiki and was designed to avoid the shortcomings of Honolulu's world famous beach. Fronting on a two-and-a-half-mile curving white sand beach, it is characterized by grand expanses of open space. A Robert Trent Jones–designed golf course and a slightly later Arnold Palmer–designed course buffer the resort from the highway. Shoreline mid-rise hotels, sitting on parcels of at least ten acres, further enhance the low-density environment with their own lushly planted grounds. Completely owned by Pioneer Mill, the project broke ground in 1960, following the concepts set forth by Donald Wolbrink (1912–1997), the head of Harland Bartholomew and Associates' Honolulu office. Wolbrink studied landscape architecture at the University of Michigan and first encountered Hawaii as a naval officer during World War II. Other early Wolbrink projects include the National Cemetery of the Pacific at Punchbowl and Honolulu's Waialae-Kahala residential area on Oahu and Dream City in Kahului on Maui.
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