Tyco Selling Off New Telecom Center

HONOLULU, August 14 -- Tyco International Ltd. is selling its new, never-used $75 million global telecommunications switching center on Oahu's Waianae Coast for less than a quarter of its original cost.

Tyco representatives said the building in Maili is a casualty of the conglomerate's troubles that halted ambitious expansion plans, which included a $1 billion undersea fiber optic cable linking east and west.

"A year ago, the sky was the limit in this industry, but now all the business has just disappeared," said David McDermott, cable depot manager for Tyco's operations in Hawaii and Guam. "I don't think expanding is in anyone's books right now."