Officials at the University of Hawaii have set their sights on a new date to begin construction on the West Oahu Campus in Kapolei. Sometime this fall is now the soonest the university is expected to start the first phase of the much-anticipated project, said Gene Awakuni, chancellor of the UH-West Oahu Campus. The previous timeframe to start the project has been pushed back from July 2008 because of unexpected delays in getting the land rezoned for the campus.
Architects are drawing up plans for a campus that will be mixed with retail shops, offices, and homes in a new 500-acre development. “We’re hoping to start in October or November at the latest,” Awakuni said. “It will take 18 months to two years to complete.”
Meaning, spring 2010 is when university officials expect to unveil the new campus.
Once completed, it will ultimately serve 7,600 students and at least 1,000 employees.
In addition, it will offer students a four-year baccalaureate program, whose features include a planned film and travel industry school. “We believe the campus will bring tremendous value to the region,” Awakuni said. For one, the campus would eliminate the 20-plus mile commute from Kapolei to the university’s Manoa campus. Instead, it would provide Kapolei residents with an opportunity to live, work, and study in their community as it continues to see explosive residential growth.
Between 1990 and 2000, Kapolei’s population grew 60 percent, to 68,718. And it has been increasingly growing ever since, leading urban planners to predict that if current growth continues, the population will reach 102,000 by 2010. That has made the community all the more desirable to the university as it looks to build on its 100th “As the University of Hawaii enters its second century of enriching the lives of students from Hawai‘i and across the Pacific, the state remains committed to providing the resources needed for the university to reach its full potential as a center of academic excellence,” said Gov. Linda Lingle. “At the same time, the growth and continued success of any major university also depends on the philanthropic support of alumni, the business sector, and the community.” anniversary of higher education in Hawai‘i.
The campus will spread across 202 acres. As for the buildings, they will occupy a 230,000 square-foot space. The campus itself will be mixed with shops, offices, and homes on a 500-acre parcel in Kapolei owned by the university. The total cost of the project’s first phase is pegged at $35 million. Of that, $7.3 million is being used in the design phase. Included in that phase are studies on such infrastructure as water, sewer, roads and drainage. That’s in addition to noise and sound studies as well as the cost for obtaining permits. The other $27.6 million pays for the construction, including developing sewer lines and a 215-foot elevated water reservoir.
In August, Lingle released those funds for the project, allowing the design work to begin a month later. “By releasing the funds, the governor enables the new campus development to move forward in a timely manner,” Awakuni said.
