Campus Center Construction Plans
By Pualani Ovono
Information gathered by Alesi Meyers-Tuimavave and Kealiʻi Rapozo
Photos by Isabella Thoulouis
Campus Center is a landmark of the University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo campus, a meeting place for social events, good food, and resources for students and faculty alike. Its mission, as found on their website, is to be a “catalyst for leadership, social, cultural, educational and recreational development of the University's student population through co-curricular programs, activities and services.” On an average school day, Campus Center can be found bustling with life.
However, Campus Center has been bustling with additional life lately, with construction that has been ongoing the entire school year, affecting students and faculty.
Ke Kalahea has received numerous requests to investigate the work, as there have been concerns that limited information has been shared with the UH Hilo community regarding the construction. Ke Kalahea staff writer Kealiʻi Rapozo interviewed Vice Chancellor of Administrative Affairs Kalei Rapoza, who is responsible for overseeing construction, and Campus Center Director Lai Sha Bugado.
Bugado said that Campus Center’s 50 anniversary coming in 2026 acted as a motivator for the renovations, and Rapoza elaborated on details of the project.
Starting last summer, the construction has gone towards several projects, including maintenance, particularly of the kitchen in the Campus Center dining hall. Isemoto Contracting, a contracting company based in Hilo, is working on the project. The overall construction project plan, as laid out by Rapoza, are as follows:
“The renovation includes extensive work for our roof, flooring, windows/skylights, doors, kitchen (electrical, ceiling tile, flooring, plumbing, exhaust/duct), exterior paint, and addition of an exterior canopy. The on-site construction commenced May 8, 2023. Our primary objective was to accomplish the first phase of the dining hall/kitchen work. Renovations for the Campus Center cafeteria is split into two summers, 2023 and 2024, so as not to disrupt food availability for the campus during the academic year. Phase 1: May 2023 to Aug. 2023 and Phase 2 May 2024 to Jul. 2024. We will be resuming the second stage of the kitchen work in Summer 2024 so we can be ready to reopen in Fall 2024 when students return. But I would say generally, the entire project was targeted to be completed this coming summer. We are still on target to finish this summer.”
New lanai beams in front of the cafeteria
A peek into the Campus Center construction
The starting installation of new lanai beams
The renovation of the canopy has garnered the most attention and criticism. According to Rapoza, due to the public nature of the construction, there was a permitting issue that delayed construction by three to four months. The new canopy will consist of structural steel roof framing, decking and steel columns, concrete slab on grade, concrete pedestals and subgrade footings, LED lighting, power/data connections, fluid applied roofing, and landscaping.” A rendering of the new canopy was shared via Haʻilono O UH Hilo campus newsletter in Oct. 2023.
However, many people in the UH Hilo community have expressed concerns about the construction project, mainly about the lack of communication and inconvenient timing. Ke Kalahea’s associate editor, Alesi Meyers-Tuimavave, interviewed anthropology professor Christopher Reichl.
Campus Center lanai before construction
“This is something that has been a huge inconvenience for close to a thousand people. Not just for a few months, but for an entire year. At best, that’s like hugely inconsiderate; at worst, it’s just plain old negligence.”
The timing of the construction has felt inconvenient.
“Yeah, they only work when we’re studying. When we’re on break, they’re on break. And you walk by there most days and there’s absolutely nothing happening.”
Kalei Rapoza’s interview also brought up working hours, which are usually before school traffic in the morning, and finished in the evening, between 7:30-9pm. Work days are weather dependent, and suboptimal weather conditions have led to less construction. In response to the working schedule, construction during scheduled breaks is spent working on the kitchen, in an effort to minimize disruptions to the kitchen schedule during the academic year, and ensure that it would be functional for the upcoming school year.
Professor Reichl also talked about whether the need for the construction is legitimate. At his estimation, there are around 60 covered tables around campus.
“In fact, what we’re facing at a nationwide level is lower enrollments, reduced revenues for universities, and it’s not like more students are gonna come to UH Hilo because there’s a canopy.”
Another issue, one brought up by multiple UH Hilo community members, was the lack of communication. Professor Reichl felt that there should’ve been an announcement, going over costs, motivations, and general information before construction started. He felt there was student input missing, a recurring issue with UH Hilo projects.
When asked about communication concerning the construction, Kalei Rapoza shared that he had only received one inquiry about the project, and that both a campus announcement and a release in the Haʻilono weekly newsletter had been shared with students. The newsletter release, which had been sent out last Oct., included a conceptual drawing of the canopy.
Rendering of new Campus Center canopy