Posted on: Tuesday, November 23, 2004
Hawai'i Kai library reopens
By Suzanne Roig
Advertiser East Honolulu
The only things that look different at the Hawai'i Kai Public Library are the shelves crammed with books, DVDs and CDs.
Deborah Booker • The Honolulu Advertiser It was the first major renovation and the second time the 31-year-old library had been closed for repair work in recent history.
"Some of our regulars are returning," said Shannon Fukumoto, Hawai'i Kai Public Library acting branch manager. "At the opening at noon, it wasn't too busy, but on Mondays it tends to get busy in the afternoon."
From noon on, patrons left the library at a steady clip with armloads of novels. Howard Bilkiss, a regular library-system patron, visits different libraries on a weekly basis.
"I made a special trip to Hawai'i Kai today," said Bilkiss as he was leaving the library with four fat novels tucked under his arm. "It didn't look any different in there to me, but they had a lot more books."
The Hawai'i Kai Public Library will have special hours this week because of the Thanksgiving holiday. The library will be closed Thursday and Friday. It will reopen at 9 a.m. Saturday. Normal hours for the Hawai'i Kai library are: The library is closed on Friday and Sunday. When the library closed, books checked out from Hawai'i Kai were given a special due date of Oct. 25, Fukumoto said.
But, Fukumoto added, even if a patron failed to return a book to another library by that date, he or she won't be held responsible for any fines.
"Just return the books," Fukumoto said.
The library also added three people to the staff to fill vacant positions.
With the Hawai'i Kai work completed, the library system has only one library closed for repair work and that is at Na'alehu on the Big Island, said Paul Mark, library spokesman.
Reroofing work began yesterday at the tiny Big Island library, a portable building of only 775 square feet. If the weather remains good during the reroofing project, the library will reopen tomorrow, Mark said.
Reach Suzanne Roig at sroig@honoluluadvertiser.com or 395-8831.
That's because the library was closed from Sept. 4 until yesterday as it underwent $305,000 worth of renovations. The roof, an air-conditioning unit and energy-efficient light fixtures were renovated.
The Hawai'i Kai Public Library reopened yesterday after undergoing repairs to its roof and other work. Although the library was relatively empty soon after its noon opening, the staff reports that business usually picks up later in the day on Mondays.
Dayle Nishioka had postponed getting library books until the Hawai'i Kai facility reopened, figuring it was easier to read what she had at home rather than learning the layout or hours of another library.
HOLIDAY CLOSURE
