April 5, 2004

ALA MOANA CENTER TO SERVE AS “MAILE ALERT” SITE

Ala Moana Center’s management company first shopping center developer in country to implement program

HONOLULU – Ala Moana Center announced today it will serve as a posting site for MAILE Alert – Hawaii’s variation of the national AMBER Alert system for locating missing children.  Thousands of people pass through Ala Moana Center on a daily basis.  These high numbers are crucial when it comes to the search for missing children.

“Serving as a MAILE Alert site is just a small part of our commitment to this community.  The first few hours are the most important when it comes to finding missing children.  We have developed a great relationship with our city and county law enforcement.  Combine this relationship with the number of people that pass through our center on a daily basis, and we hope we can help reunite children with their families,” said Sharon James, regional vice president of marketing for General Growth – Hawaii, Ala Moana’s owner and manager.

The MAILE Alert Plan is a voluntary partnership between the Honolulu Police Department, emergency management agencies, and local broadcasters to notify the public when a child has been abducted and solicit help in locating the child and abductor.  Upon notification of a missing child, local law enforcement agencies or BeyondMissing.com will issue a statement to Ala Moana Center with crucial information such as name, photo and description of the missing child.  The mall’s public safety team will post the alert in high-traffic areas within the mall, such as all the entrances and the customer service center.  Ala Moana will implement the MAILE Alert program within the next three months.
 
MAILE is an acronym for Minor Abducted In Life-threatening Emergency and is named for Maile Gilbert, who was six years old when she was abducted on August 25, 1985, from a party in Kailua.  Her killer was located several hours later, and he led detectives to Kaena Point where he had buried her.

The national AMBER Alert System began in 1996 when nine-year-old Amber Hagerman turned up missing from her Arlington, Texas neighborhood.  Dallas-Fort Worth broadcasters teamed up with local police to develop the system.  AMBER is an acronym for America’s Missing Broadcast Emergency Response. 

Under the MAILE Alert program, police will notify the public, via the broadcast media and the State Department of Transportation’s freeway signs, about a child abduction, with information on the child, suspect and suspect’s vehicle.  This information will be sent to broadcasters using the State Civil Defense emergency alert system.

If you hear a MAILE alert broadcast and you think you have information that may be helpful in the investigation, immediately call the MAILE Alert hotline at 540-TIPS (540-8477) or toll-free at
1-866-HPD-LOST (1-866-473-5678).

HPD and the Missing Child Center of Hawaii emphasize the need for parents to call police immediately after they realize their child is missing.  According to national statistics, the first few hours following an abduction are the most critical.

Ala Moana Center (www.alamoanacenter.com) is owned and managed by General Growth Properties, Inc.  General Growth Properties is the country's second largest shopping center owner, manager and developer.  General Growth currently has ownership interest in, or management responsibility for, a portfolio of 172 regional shopping malls in 41 states.  The company portfolio totals approximately 150 million square feet of retail space and includes over 16,000 retailers nationwide.  A publicly traded Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT), General Growth Properties is listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol GGP.  For more information on General Growth Properties and its portfolio of malls, please visit the company Web site at www.generalgrowth.com.

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