Schools still await play equipment
By Suzanne Roig
Advertiser Staff Writer
Only one of 39 public schools that were promised playground equipment by the end of December will have something for students to play on.
The rest are running four to six weeks behind schedule, said Ken Kajihara, a state Department of Education facilities planner.
State education officials had said they would be able to get in all 39 by the end of the year and an additional 30 playgrounds installed by March 25, but construction delays typical of such installations have pushed things back, Kajihara said.
The delays have left many public schools without play equipment for more than two years, since the old equipment was removed for safety reasons.
Mililani Uka Elementary School will be the first school to get new playground equipment. Yesterday, contractors were installing the concrete pad needed under the playground's rubberized surface. In 10 days, the concrete will be cured and the playground equipment can be installed, Kajihara said.
By the end of this week the contractor will move to Hale Kula Elementary School in Wahiawa to pour the concrete foundations. After that, crews will work on Ka'elepulu and Keolu elementary schools in Kailua, Kajihara said.
"A playground is dynamic," he said. "It's kind of complicated. There are many players and it takes a lot of time. All that contributed to the delay. Putting in playgrounds is a new thing for the DOE."
Kajihara said he will meet with the concrete company weekly to tighten the schedule and get work done as quickly as possible.
While the principal and parents at Mililani Uka are glad that playground work finally has begun, at least one lawmaker wonders about the continuing delays.
Rep. Cynthia Thielen, R-49th (Kailua, Kane'ohe Bay Drive), was upset to learn that state education officials were unable to meet their own timeline. For months, Thielen has been talking with education officials almost weekly to get updates on the playground equipment.
"The head of the facilities branch sat in our office and gave these dates; we didn't set them," Thielen said. "There are now two years of students who haven't been able to have meaningful playground equipment."
In spring 1999, many schools were left without playground equipment after state officials recommended their removal for safety reasons. Typically, school parent groups have been responsible for providing playground equipment. But reacting to the public outcry over the lack of play equipment at schools, the Legislature appropriated $4.5 million over the past couple of years to spend on playground equipment and installation of the soft surface underneath.
Since then, state officials have been trying to determine how to get the best playground equipment at the best price and satisfy each school's needs. After questions from equipment vendors, bid specifications had to be rewritten, further delaying the process.
However, because officials did the legwork themselves, the DOE will save enough money to purchase equipment for 10 more schools, Kajihara said.
A total of 85 schools of more than 250 statewide submitted proposals for playground equipment about 16 months ago. Some schools didn't need equipment because their campuses are next to city parks. And at others, parent groups raised money through bake sales, walk-a-thons, auctions and magazine drives to buy their own playground equipment.
Reach Suzanne Roig at sroig@honoluluadvertiser.com or 395-8831.
