Kalihi businesses brace for disruptions as HART awards $500M utility relocation contract

HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) - The Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation said Thursday that it awarded a $500 million utility relocation contract for the Dillingham Boulevard corridor to Nan Inc., paving the way for construction in the Kalihi area to resume.

“Awarding the contract for the utility relocations for Dillingham Boulevard is a huge accomplishment for HART as it is the final large contract before we get to the actual guideway and station construction through this corridor,” said HART Executive Director and CEO Lori Kahikina.

Kahikina said the bid came in lower than independent cost estimates by about 3%.

Work between Middle Street and the downtown area has been stalled for about a year due to problems in relocating the utilities. Area lawmakers said they’re relieved that work can move ahead again

“Kalihi is the is the last working-class neighborhood in urban Honolulu. So we have been looking forward to the completion of rail for many years now,” said state Rep. Sonny Ganaden, who represents Kalihi.

“And we hope that those stations can eventually connect workers to their jobs and downtown and Waikiki.”

The work will take place in the Kalihi-Palama area from the corner of Kamehameha Highway and Laumaka Street to the corner of Dillingham Boulevard and Kaaahi Street.

Construction is expected to begin next spring and be completed in three years.

Traffic in some parts of Kalihi is already congested due the large amount of sewer work in the area. Some businesses worry they’ll see even more congestion.

“It’s going to be brutal for us. And you know, it will definitely impact our ability to maneuver,” said Dave Marabella, owner of Garden & Valley Isle Seafood Inc.

Marabella’s business is on the rail line so he is relocating to Sand Island. He worries that the rail construction will disrupt customer traffic to area shops like it did in Waipahu seven years ago.

“Everybody’s gonna be affected like that,” he said.

Ganaden said he wants the city and the state to ensure that customers have adequate accesss to storefronts in Kalihi.

In the meantime, HART says it hold community meetings about the planned construction and how it plans to mitigate the impacts on businesses.

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