Kilauea School leaders have just moved one step closer to realizing their goal of a new cafeteria, said state Sen. Gary Hooser, D-Kaua‘i-Ni‘ihau, and state Rep. Mina Morita, D-Kapa‘a-North Kaua‘i. “The (state) legislature appropriated $2.4 million in 2004 for the
Kilauea School leaders have just moved one step closer to realizing their goal of a new cafeteria, said state Sen. Gary Hooser, D-Kaua‘i-Ni‘ihau, and state Rep. Mina Morita, D-Kapa‘a-North Kaua‘i.
“The (state) legislature appropriated $2.4 million in 2004 for the planning, design, construction and equipment for a badly needed cafeteria,” Hooser said. “According to the facilities branch of the (state) Department of Education, $635,000 of that total has now been made available for the design phase of the project.
“We are delighted that Governor Lingle has released those funds,” he said. Earlier, Lingle said she would not release the design funds because no construction funding had been appropriated.
Morita expressed thanks to community supporters.
In releasing the funds, Lingle said the new cafeteria can be used by the North Shore community for public meetings and activities.
The project includes building the new cafeteria and relocating or demolishing the existing cafeteria, part of which encroaches on an adjacent private property.
The existing cafeteria is a registered historic building. Therefore, the final determination on whether the structure can be relocated or demolished will be made following an environmental assessment and evaluation of the scope of work as it relates to the Kilauea Elementary School Master Plan that was developed in July 1999.
The total cost for the —cafeteria project is currently estimated to be $5.3 million. To date, only $2.4 million of the total project cost has been appropriated by the state Legislature, Lingle indicated.
State Department of Education officials included the balance of the amount in their capital improvement project (CIP) budget request, but instead were given a lump sum amount by the state Legislature for all projects statewide, Lingle commented.
DOE officials have not yet identified the projects that will be funded by this lump-sum amount, she said.
“The residents of North Kaua‘i have waited patiently for a new cafeteria for their school,” said Lingle. “Although not all the funds have been appropriated for this project, the current budget situation allows us to move forward on the design phase, while the (state) Department of Education determines whether to fund the balance of the project.
“We appreciate the efforts of (Kaua‘i) Mayor (Bryan J.) Baptiste, Sen. Hooser and Principal (Fred) Rose in helping this important project move forward,” Lingle said.
The Kilauea School cafeteria project plans call for the design phase to be completed by June 2006, and for construction to start in the fall of 2006.
Kilauea School Principal Fred Rose stressed how important these funds are to the school.
“Our existing cafeteria is postage-stamp size, with a very small kitchen and a tiny stage” that serves the school’s 335 students, from pre-kindergarten to sixth grade.
“The new cafeteria should be large enough to accommodate full assemblies, plays, and other school meetings. We also hope that the facility will be a ‘hardened’ building that can provide shelter during emergencies for the Kilauea population,” Rose said.
“Kilauea is a dynamic, growing community, and the school sits at its center,” Morita said. “A modern, functional cafeteria is long overdue. Replacing the obsolete, overcrowded one has been a priority in my work at the Legislature. I am pleased to see it one step closer to reality.”
A master plan for school improvements that dates back at least to 1997 calls for the construction of a new cafeteria and the conversion of the old one to an administration office after it has been moved entirely onto school property from its current site, encroaching on a neighbor’s lot.
The school, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, was begun in 1918, with the main building constructed in 1922. The cafeteria was designed by Tai Hing Leong, and built in 1940 shortly before World War II, when Kilauea was a thriving, sugar-plantation town.
