Kaneohe Ranch has finalized a deal to bring Target Corp. to Kailua.

The land owner sold the 311,000-square-foot Don Quijote USA Co. Ltd. site on Friday despite opposition among a vocal group of residents who fear the big-box giant will change Kailua’s small-town character, bringing in more people to the quiet neighborhood and causing further traffic congestion. 

Kaneohe Ranch said that all tenants on the Don Quijote site that have not secured space for in Kailua have been relocated. The retailers include Hakuyosha Dry Cleaners, Enterprise Rent-A-Car, Yum Yum Express, Ba-Le Sandwiches & Bakery and Twogood Kayaks Hawaii Inc. 

"We are faced with the fact that many of the commercial leases in Kailua town, which were negotiated in the 1950s and ’60s as 50-to 60-year leases, are now coming to an end," said Mitch D’Olier, Kaneohe Ranch chief executive officer. "In quite a few cases, these properties have deteriorated substantially in the final years of these leases, and the current leaseholders cannot or do not want to negotiate a new lease. Don Quijote was looking to sell its lease and therefore was not interested in maintaining or upgrading the property. Kaneohe Ranch was concerned that without the right tenant the site would steadily deteriorate."

The Minneapolis-based retailer plans to invest $40 million to build what will be its fifth Hawaii store, generating 250 construction jobs and more than 250 jobs at the store, scheduled to open in July 2012.

Construction on the 130,000-square-foot store at 345 Hahani St. is expected to begin this spring.

Don Quijote is closing its Kailua store on Feb. 5, affect more than 100 employees, according to a store supervisor.