The construction of the new courthouse and state Judiciary complex off Kapule Highway has moved closer to reality with approval of an environmental study by the state Office of Environmental Quality Control. OEQC recently issued a “findings of no significant
The construction of the new courthouse and state Judiciary complex off Kapule Highway has moved closer to reality with approval of an environmental study by the state Office of Environmental Quality Control.
OEQC recently issued a “findings of no significant impacts” for an environmental assessment for the project, opening the way for it to proceed.
The building is planned to be constructed next to a new police complex mauka of Lihue Airport.
With both structures up, judicial, law enforcement and emergency services for the public will be centralized and are expected to be streamlined and upgraded.
For the work on the courthouse project to get under way, a final stamp of approval is needed primarily from Kaua’i County agencies and the state Department of Health, according to Jim Niermann, a planner with the R.M.Towill Corp. of Honolulu.
R.M. Towill is a Honolulu subcontractor for the main consultant of the project, Anbe, Aruga & Ishizu Architects, Inc., also of Honolulu.
The state Department of Accounting and General Services, which would have responsibility for the project, anticipates the work to start in spring 2003 and be completed by the summer of 2005.
The multi-million project is intended to replace the existing state courthouse in Lihu’e. That facility is still functional, but lacks the space to meet Kaua’i’s current and future judiciary needs, OEQC said.
Judicial, law enforcement and emergency response services are currently located around or near the historic County Building.
A complex for the Kaua’i Police Department, the Kaua’i County Prosecutor’s Office and the Kaua’i County Civil Defense Agency is going up on a lot next to the proposed judiciary project and is expected to be completed between late-September and the end of this year, county officials have said.
The new courthouse, which would house the state Family Court, District Court and Circuit Court, consists of 112,000 square feet and will be developed on about seven acres the state bought from Grove Farm Co.
The new building will consist of three levels containing six courtrooms, space for court programs, conference rooms secured areas, cells, space for legal research and archives, and public areas with exhibit space, the OEQC report said.
The structure’s most dominant features will be two wings and a central courtyard. One wing will run parallel to Kapule Highway and the other will run parallel to Ka’ana Street.
The building will be built to a height of 55 feet, requiring a zoning variance from the county, Niermann said.
In addition, 286 parking spaces will be provided for state employees and the public.
Also planned are landscaping, an air-conditioning tower and a generator.
The project will go out to bid and will be developed at an estimated cost of about $34 million, Niermann said.
Before work can get started, the state will need to obtain a class-four zoning and use permits from the Kaua’i County Planning Commission, necessitating a public hearing in the future, Niermann said.
Also needed will be a construction noise permit from the DOH.
The old state courthouse will be used for additional office space by an agency connected with DAGs and will no longer be used for court operations. Niermann said.
In the future, the building will be refurbished on a “as-need basis,” he said, adding there are some ADA (American with Disabilities Act) issues and some improvements (involved).”
Staff writer Lester Chang can be reached at 245-3681 (ext.225) and mailto:lchang@pulitzer.net
