Posted on: Friday, November 16, 2001
Hanauma Bay upgrade five months behind schedule
By Suzanne Roig
Advertiser East Honolulu Writer
Problems encountered during construction have put the $10.6 million education center and improvements to the lower bay at this nature preserve about five months behind schedule.
However, city officials say the problems are routine and can be worked out with the contractor.
Initially the city had targeted this month for completion of the center and the lower bay improvements. Construction began in April. As it stands, the education center is about 60 percent complete, the concession stands about 90 percent and the lower-level improvements about 70 percent, said Ben Lee, city managing director.
The work has been delayed primarily by:
• The burying of utility lines and negotiations with Hawaiian Electric Co.
• An old water main that serves the upper and lower bay that was found where none was supposed to be and must be replaced because of its poor condition.
• Time spent removing loose rocks from the cliff leading down to the bay.
"We want to complete the facility as soon as we can," said Lee. "And get the education program started as soon as possible."
Lee said that lowering the roof of the education center did not put construction behind schedule. The city briefly stopped work in May to lower the roof 5 feet because it was determined that the center could be seen from the beach. The city spent about $80,000 to reduce the height of the building, to ensure that the project will be invisible from the beach as originally promised.
Lee did not know by how much the three additional jobs will increase total costs, but did say that removing the rocks cost $60,000. The loose rocks presented a hazard to pedestrians, Lee said.
"These aren't just any kind of rocks; these were rocks the size of picnic tables," he said. "The Friends of Hanauma Bay and Alan Hong (the bay's manager) felt very strongly that the loose rocks needed to be removed. No one's noticed that the rocks were even gone."
The water main was not on any city map and came as a surprise to workers, Lee said. The cost to replace the water lines will be about $60,000.
The delay pushes back the start of education programs for school groups, the training of docents and the development of the short video that discusses the cultural history of the bay, the importance of protecting the wildlife, coral, fish and sea turtles, said Peter Rappa, a University of Hawai'i Sea Grant College marine science faculty member in charge of the education program at Hanauma Bay.
The city has maintained that the education center is necessary to protect the bay. At the center, visitors will be required to watch a video on water safety and reef preservation. But opponents have argued that the center will be an eyesore on the state conservation area. The city's designers promised that the building and the improvements on the bay would blend into the landscape and improve the experience at the bay.
Rappa and his small staff will have to continue to train docents who endure makeshift conditions as they explain the water conditions of the bay, how to snorkel and identifying fish.
"There's still lots of work that needs to be done," Rappa said. "They're putting on the facade of the building now. I need a firm date so I can hire education specialists."
