MES Oahu

Photography: Courtesy of David Croxford Article Written By: Loren Moreno, HONOLULU Magazine What is it? After the original wood version of Castle Hall on the Punahou School campus burned down in 1911, the school rebuilt it in 1913 as its new girls’ dormitory. Both the original and replacement version were funded by Mary Tenney Castle, the wife of Samuel Northup Castle, founder of Castle & Cooke and original trustee of Punahou School. While it is no longer used as a dormitory, the building has been at the center of hundreds of Punahou alumni’s academic careers, including President Barack Obama. Its status as an iconic structure for Punahou School is demonstrated in its appearance on the school’s Christmas ornament last year. What threatens it? Punahou School declined to comment on this story, but the school’s board of trustees approved a master plan in May that sets the groundwork for demolishing the building to make space for an outdoor common area, says Faulkner. The school informed the Historic Hawai‘i Foundation that the building would come down in the final phase of its campus master plan, which is at least eight years away. Mary Cooke, member of the Punahou Board of Trustees from 1968 to 2011, was honored in May by the Punahou Alumni Association. In accepting the award, she called the school’s plans “very troubling,” and urged the board to seek “a qualified preservation firm to help evaluate options for preservation.” Cooke said the building should remain standing as a memorial to the school’s history, noting the Castle family’s connection to the school. “I’d like to encourage Punahou’s current and future leaders to continue Punahou’s long-term commitment to keeping alive our rich architectural heritage,” she said. What [...]

Photography: Courtesy of David Croxford Article Written By: Loren Moreno, HONOLULU Magazine What is it? Thomas Square is Hawai‘i’s first official public park, dedicated in 1850 by King Kamehameha III for British Rear Adm. Richard Thomas. During a ceremony in 1843 on the plot of land now bearing his name, the admiral restored the sovereignty of the Hawaiian Kingdom after British subjects unlawfully seized the Hawaiian government. It was during that ceremony that King Kamehameha III spoke the famous words that would become the state’s motto, “Ua mau ke ea o ka ‘āina i ka pono.” Nearly 90 years later, additional features would be added to the park, including a central water fountain, radial coral pathways arranged in the pattern of the Union Jack and the Beretania Street Promenade, designed by landscape architects Catherine Jones Thompson and Bob Thompson. The park was placed on the National Register for Historic Places in 1972 based on its political significance. What threatens it? In his 2014 State of the City address, Mayor Kirk Caldwell listed the restoration of Thomas Square as one of his top priorities, says Curtis Lum, spokesman for the city Department of Planning and Permitting. “His vision is to see Thomas Square emerge, once again, as a crown jewel and, with the Blaisdell, become a more active gathering place that anchors a vibrant arts and cultural community,” Lum says. While concrete plans have not been developed, one proposal discussed in April includes designing a bike path through the park, box planters and hard pathways. The concepts “were not based on restoring the features and characteristics from the historic period, but rather would erase most of the landscape architecture designed by Thompson and Thompson,” says Kiersten Faulkner, [...]

Photography: Courtesy of David Croxford Article Written By: Loren Moreno, HONOLULU Magazine What is it? Located in Ke‘ehi Lagoon, Mokauea is a tiny, 10-acre island, home to O‘ahu’s last remaining fishing village. Its history goes back to the Kingdom of Hawai‘i, with King Kamehameha III declaring in 1830 that Mokauea Island was a protected royal fishing site. Over the years, fishing families have called Mokauea home, perpetuating Hawaiian fishing practices, as well as preserving traditional maritime knowledge. While only three families remain on the island today, as many as 14 families were temporarily evicted during World War II. In 1975, the state again attempted to evict families to allow for an extension of the airport’s reef runway. After pushback, the families were allowed to remain under a lease from the state that expires in 2043. What threatens it? In the past few years, the state Department of Land and Natural Resources has proposed building the Sand Island Ocean Recreation Park in Ke‘ehi Lagoon, which could include a marina of some 400 boat slips, a canoe pavilion and an activity center. Public information meetings were held on the project in 2011 and 2012, but it has yet to receive funding from the state Legislature, says Deborah Ward, DLNR spokeswoman. Advocacy groups believe it would disturb the area’s marine environment and could potentially displace the remaining families that live on Mokauea Island. “Mokauea is part of the bigger puzzle of the whole cultural landscape of the area,” says archeologist Kehaulani Kupihea, whose family lives on the island. Kupihea says building a marina would create excessive motorized boat traffic in the waters surrounding Mokauea, disrupting the water for fishing and canoeing. The development would not be in the [...]

Photos: Courtesy of Olivier Koning Article Written By: Victoria Wiseman, HONOLULU Magazine What is it? The ‘Ewa Sugar Plantation, which appears on the National Register of Historic Places, is one of the most intact neighborhoods from the plantation era. The historic sites, including its cemetery, are still part of a thriving community. The cemetery was the final resting place of immigrants and some plantation managers. Markers include both wooden crosses and headstones made of lava rocks. Some have Japanese inscriptions; the oldest legibly dated markers are from 1902. What threatens it? As the sugar industry collapsed, the O‘ahu Sugar Co. sold the plantation to the City & County of Honolulu in the mid-1990s. Although the city and the community have worked to rehabilitate and restore parts of the plantation, some areas-such as the cemetery-have been neglected. Markers have moved, a fire has burned some of the wooden crosses and kiawe and weeds grow aggressively. "Gravestones are just sitting there, toppled over," says Mitchell Tynanes, an ‘Ewa Beach Community Board member. What can be done? It looks like only community pride can save the cemetery: According to the Department of Facility Maintenance, there are no plans for improvements or any construction there. Ross Sasamura, chief engineer for the department, says budgetary challenges are to blame. "The city hasn't gone in, and we cannot wait," says Tynanes, who coordinates cleanup efforts through the Lion's Club. Monthly cleanups are sparsely attended, but a dedicated handful of community members go regularly to clean up and create an updated map of markers, which have shifted over time. A Friends of ‘Ewa Cemetery fundraising site, set up by the community, gives the proceeds to the Lion's Club, and community cleanups are [...]

Photos: Courtesy of Rae Huo Article Written By: Michael Keany, HONOLULU Magazine What is it? The Austin and Pantheon buildings sit on Nu‘uanu Avenue, directly behind the Hawai‘i Theatre. The Austin is home to Restaurant Epic, while the now-boarded-up Pantheon, built in 1911, once housed Honolulu’s oldest bar: the Pantheon, founded in 1883.   What threatens them? Hawai‘i Theatre is planning a $21 million expansion that will add a deeper main stage, a separate black-box theater and a restaurant, as well as storage space, changing rooms and offices. Sarah Richards, president of Hawai‘i Theatre Center, says “We’ll be able to host a much wider range of performances, both larger and smaller. It will be a real benefit to the neighborhood.” To make room for the upgrades, however, Richards says the Austin and the Pantheon will need to be demolished. What can be done? Architect Glenn Mason describes the Pantheon as, “a wreck, structurally,” but says that he’d like to see at least the façades of the two buildings preserved. “They’re contributing to the historic district, although they aren’t wildly significant by themselves,” he says. “If Hawai‘i Theatre is planning on tearing the buildings down and replacing them with fake façades, that’s a concern.”   Kiersten Faulkner, executive director of the Historic Hawai‘i Foundation, agrees. “The success of the theater is good for the community, but so is having an intact and complete Chinatown. Replicated buildings weaken the context and undermine the overall district. Historic preservation is not only about monumental and iconic buildings; it’s also about the everyday experience of vibrant streets and active neighborhoods.” Hawai‘i Theatre is early in the planning stages—the current timeline calls for a 2012 construction start date—and it’s Faulkner’s hope [...]

Photos: Courtesy of Rae Huo UPDATE: 2014 The Navy completed historic research and analysis in June 2014 about the battlefield significance of the former Marine Corps Air Station ‘Ewa. The resulting documentation determined that the site is likely eligible to be designated on the National Register of Historic Places for its association with events significant to the history of the country. The “Determination of Eligibility” will be reviewed by accepting officials at the State Historic Preservation Division, the US Navy and the Department of Interior (which is the Keeper of the National Register) to make the final determination on the historic significance and remaining integrity of the resources. UPDATE: 2012 According to the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation (Case Digest: Section 106 in Action), the Navy is proposing to approve construction of a 5.91-megawatt photovoltaic (PV) field array on approximately 20 acres of land leased to Ford Island Ventures (FIV). The proposal includes a sublease by FIV to the Kalaeloa Renewable Energy Park LLC, a company formed to develop this project. The runways at Ewa Field were initially proposed location for the PV field. Upon consultation with the SHPO, Native Hawaiian groups, interested parties, and the public, the proposed PV field was relocated to a parcel adjacent to the runways, known as “the panhandle.” LISTED AS ENDANGERED IN 2008 Article Written BY: Michael Keany, HONOLULU Magazine What is it? Originally established in 1925 as a Navy field for airships—yes, dirigibles—this military site was used only sporadically until early 1941, when the Marine Corps converted it into an active airfield as World War II heated up around the world. When the Japanese fighter pilots buzzed in close on Dec. 7, they were able to destroy or [...]

Photos: Courtesy of Rae Huo UPDATE: SAVED Article Written By: Kathryn Drury Wagner, HONOLULU Magazine This Vladimir Ossipoff-designed building made the 2007 list, but, rather than being torn down, it has been reborn. The Queen’s Health Systems renovated the 1961 structure to turn it into office space, moving the library materials elsewhere. The project started in November 2011, according to Makana McClellan of QHS corporate communications, and was primarily an interior renovation, with efforts to maintain the exterior’s appearance. The building reopened in October 2012, says McClellan. “I’m sitting in it right now!” LISTED AS ENDANGERED IN 2007 Article Written By: Michael Keany, HONOLULU Magazine What is it? Renowned Hawai‘i architect Vladimir Ossipoff designed this building in 1959 as a permanent home for the Hawai‘i Medical Library, which had been forced to move seven times since its founding in 1913. Today the library’s historic collections serve as invaluable resources for medical students. What threatens it? Squeezed onto a dense urban campus, The Queen’s Medical Center has long been short on parking, with many employees waiting years for a space. The hospital desperately needs a new multilevel parking structure, and with no free space left on campus, the Medical Library is seen as the most expendable building. Mark Yamakawa, the chief operating officer of Queen’s Health Systems, says the hospital is reluctant to tear down the library, but says, “Queen’s infrastructure is already at capacity, particularly with regard to parking. We need to look to the future.” What can be done? Yamakawa says that Queen’s first choice of sites for its parking structure is right next door—a surface parking lot belonging to the Board of Water Supply. Not only is the location conveniently close to the [...]

UPDATE: 2013 Article Written By: Victoria Wiseman, HONOLULU Magazine  Interestingly enough, something that threatens this location is also helping it: television crews. “The Hawai‘i Five-O film crew came in this year and they made some significant improvements to the foundations of the Irwin House, the house that was constructed in 1893,” says Paul Brennan of the Kailua Historical Society. But it was accidental that Brennan came across the crew, who he said had no idea of the significance of where they were filming. After explaining its history, he was able to supervise the carpenters for a few days. “They took a great deal of care, responding with the kind of mālama that we wish would happen all the time,” Brennan says. Despite this, the landowner has still done nothing to restore or protect the property, which is rife with graffiti and continues to deteriorate. UPDATE: 2011 Dr. Brennan, at Kailua Historical Society, stated that there continues to be no effort by HRT, Inc. to maintain the property and its structures. The company still has not responded to offers from the Kailua Historical Society to lease and maintain the property. LISTED AS ENDANGERED IN 2005 Article Written By: A. Kam Napier, HONOLULU Magazine What is it? This 10-acre has been touched by every historical movement from the Great Māhele to the Japanese investment bubble of the 1980s. Some highlights: Maj. Edward Boyd and his wife bought the land in 1869, creating an estate where King David Kalākaua and his Sister, Lili’uokalani, attended parties or simply came for rest – in fact, Lili’uokalani penned “Aloha ‘Oe” after an 1878 visit to the estate. Sugar baron William G. Irwin next purchased the estate in 1893, starting up a coffee mill there that still exists. C. Brewer owned the estate in the [...]