KEKAHA — Gov. Linda Lingle last week released nearly $1.6 million in additional construction funds to dredge the inner harbor basin area of Kekaha’s Kikiaola Small Boat Harbor as the latest step in a massive state and federal cooperative improvement
KEKAHA — Gov. Linda Lingle last week released nearly $1.6 million in additional construction funds to dredge the inner harbor basin area of Kekaha’s Kikiaola Small Boat Harbor as the latest step in a massive state and federal cooperative improvement project, officials said.
“This project will make Kikiaola Small Boat Harbor safer for recreational and commercial boaters and is in line with efforts by our administration to upgrade and expand small boat harbors statewide and improve state infrastructure on all islands,” Lingle said in a press release.
The goal of the project is to eliminate breaking waves and make the harbor safer for boaters, according to an April news release from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
The total projected cost for the improvement was estimated to be $28.15 million, which includes a $5.96 million in state funds and $22.19 million in federal funds, according to Lingle’s statement.
However, the original funding, which covered the construction of a higher breakwater to provide greater protection for the inner harbor and other navigational enhancements and considerable dredging, may not have done enough to clear the area between the boat launch and the shallow entrance channel.
State Rep. Roland Sagum said yesterday that Lingle and Kaua‘i liaison Lori Yoshida arranged for money that had been approved by the Legislature for other areas to be used toward increased dredging.
“The governor didn’t have to do that, but because she loves Kaua‘i and was concerned that the boat harbor would not be usable even after all this work … she was able to find the funds and make the project complete,” Sagum said. “That was huge for the governor to do that. I’ll be sending her a note of thanks. She’s done so much for Kaua‘i. (Lingle and Yoshida) have done so much for our people.”
State Department of Land and Natural Resources Chair Laura Thielen said some of the additional dredging will actually occur in the federal portion of the harbor.
“One contractor is coming in there to do the two halves of the job while they’re there,” Thielen said. “By the state and the federal government working together, it’s going to increase efficiency.
“In the short term, it’ll open up areas where boats can go. The dredging is going to help tremendously,” she said. “The release is an acknowledgment that we have the funding and this project is a priority.”
The dredging is scheduled to begin in early 2009, according to the governor’s statement. All project work, including the construction of the new breakwater, is scheduled to be completed by July.
Boaters seeking more information regarding this construction project and the upcoming schedule should contact Sharon Nekoba of DLNR, Division of Boating and Ocean Recreation at (808) 587-3250 or Steven Takeguchi of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers at (808) 438-1274.
• Michael Levine, staff writer, can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 252) or via e-mail at mlevine@kauaipubco.com
