The State is looking for qualified applicants  to enter into long-term lease agreements for the former Uncle Billy’s Hilo Bay Hotel and the former County Club Condominium Hotel in the Banyan Drive area of Hilo.

The State Department of Land and Natural Resources published legal notices on Sunday, announcing the Requests for Proposals (RFP) for the two iconic properties. Both properties will require substantial investments for renovations and operations of the properties. The department is hoping to receive proposals that will promote the continued revitalization of Banyan Drive and help re-establish East Hawai‘i as a travel destination.

The DLNR will hold a briefing for interested parties at 10:00 a.m. on September 1, 2020, to explain the RFQ/RFP process and objectives, and answer questions. The briefing will be held virtually by Zoom or other virtual meeting platform. Interested parties can obtain the link to the briefing by emailing dlnr.land@hawaii.gov at least twenty-four (24) hours in advance of the briefing time.  Attendance by potential applicants is encouraged, but not required.

To be eligible for consideration in the RFQ/RFP process, interested parties must first complete and submit a Notice of Intent form to any of the DLNR Land Division offices listed below by no later than 4:00 p.m., September 11, 2020.

The next step of the RFQ/RFP process is the submission of statements of qualifications by applicants, which must be submitted by no later than 4:00 p.m., September 30, 2020. DLNR will determine which applicants meet the qualification criteria (and may form a short list of the most qualified applicants), and those applicants will be invited to participate in the next phase of the RFQ/RFP process.

Interested applicants can get more information at these links:

https://dlnr.hawaii.gov/ld/RFQ-RFP-unclebillys  

https://dlnr.hawaii.gov/ld/RFQ-RFP-countryclub  

DLNR also provided an aerial video of the Banyan Drive area: