HONOLULU (AP) – After a $55 million cleanup, one of the world’s largest hotels is ready to reopen its 453-room Waikiki tower – shut down only a year after it was built because of a persistent mold problem.

The Hilton Hawaiian Village reopens its 25-story Kalia Tower to guests on Sept. 1, confident the grayish mildew was exorcised in the year it was closed for cleaning.

“It took awhile to get it fixed, but we wanted to make sure we did it right,” said Kathy Shepard, a Hilton Hotels Corp. spokeswoman in Beverly Hills, Calif.

The tower cost $95 million to build. When it opened in May 2001, it was touted as a symbol of a revitalized Waikiki, adding rooms to the sprawling beachfront complex that has played host to everyone from international political leaders to showbiz royalty. It was the first new commercial hotel structure to open in Waikiki in a decade.

But mold was discovered June 7 2002, prompting the hotel to cordon off sections of the tower. The infestation became so pervasive that the entire tower was closed on July 24, 2002. The overall Hilton complex, with 2,979 other rooms, remained open.

The mildew belonged to the group of eurotium mold, which can irritate the eyes, nose and throat. Exposure also can trigger more serious respiratory diseases such as asthma and an inflammatory reaction called hypersensitivity pneumonitis, Hilton officials said.

Hilton spent $20 million on consulting and investigation fees and another $35 million for capital costs such as replacing furniture, drapes and wallpaper, and cleaning ventilation systems, Shepard said.

No serious health problems were reported from the mold, but the tab for cleanup was more than five times the original $10 million estimate.

“Obviously we wanted the situation to be remedied,” Shepard said. “We just worked as quickly as possible to get it fixed.”

Hilton has sued 18 companies and individuals, blaming architects, engineers, construction companies and inspection firms for the problem.

The hotel, in turn, is being sued by a Florida man seeking a refund of rent he paid during an 18-day stay at the Kalia Tower last July. According to the lawsuit, Jeff Moffett, his wife and son asked four times to be moved after noticing damp bed sheets, and were given four different reasons why they could not be moved.

The lawsuit seeks only room rent refunds and does not make any health-related claims.

Most health complaints came from workers, who said they suffered from eye, nose and throat irritation, although a survey of 300 employees performed by a Utah doctor hired by Hilton found no serious problems.

About 40 employees, mostly housekeepers, were put to work in other towers, but had their hours cut, said Jason Ward, a spokesman for Local 5 of the Hotel Employees & Restaurant Employees union.

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On the Net:

Hilton Hotels Corp.: http://www.hilton.com

AP-ES-08-12-03 0301EDT