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The state Department of Transportation has decided not to repair the 90-year-old Hana Pier and instead will be removing it.
The Transportation Department said Wed-nesday that the decision was based on feedback and input received from the Hana community. A survey was passed out to nearly 750 Hana residents to weigh public feelings about the project to repair the pier, built in the early 1920s, which was condemned and fenced off in 2010. The department also held several community meetings.
Residents had expressed concerns about the arrival of commercial activity with the pier repairs.
State Sen. J. Kalani English, who represents Hana, pushed for improvements nearly a decade ago. In 2008, then-Gov. Linda Lingle signed a law that appropriated $842 million for upgrades to seven aging harbors statewide, including $20 million for the Hana harbor facility. English said in 2008 that improvements to Hana’s pier were needed to provide a “lifeline” in the event that roads were cut off in emergencies, such as the October 2006 earthquake that cause a two-year closure of 10 miles of Hana Highway between Kaupo and Kipahulu.
After reviewing various options for rebuilding the pier and discussing the plans with the community, the Transportation Department has decided to remove the pier “given the opposition to the improvements.”
The pier removal is a necessity due to safety concerns, said Ford Fuchigami, transportation director.
“Leaving the pier in its current condition is not an option,” he said. “However, we have listened to the residents and heard their opposition to commercial use of the facility and will now remove the pier.”
Excluding commercial use does not align with the mission of the Harbors Division, which is to manage commercial harbors for loading, off-loading and handling of cargo, passengers and vessels, the Transportation Department said.
The estimated cost of the pier removal is $3.5 million. An environmental impact statement will be conducted on the pier removal, which is expected to take a year to complete. The public is allowed to make additional comments to be included in the EIS.
The $16.5 million assigned to the repair project will be returned to the Harbors Division for use in other improvement projects in the state.
“We put forward our best effort to provide the Hana community with a new and useful pier,” said English on Wednesday. “Options were presented to residents and after a review of the feedback, this is the overwhelming response from the community, so we will abide by their choice.”