By TOM CALLIS ADVERTISING By TOM CALLIS Tribune-Herald staff writer Kilauea Avenue will be closed in both directions at the Aupuni Street intersection for about 12 hours a day starting next week as crews add a manhole and make sewer
By TOM CALLIS
Tribune-Herald staff writer
Kilauea Avenue will be closed in both directions at the Aupuni Street intersection for about 12 hours a day starting next week as crews add a manhole and make sewer repairs.
The closure will start Wednesday and extend to the bridge near the Waiakea Pond. It will impact several business and bus routes through the area in addition to regular traffic.
The closure will occur from approximately 6 a.m.-6 p.m. weekdays and might continue up until Christmas Eve, according to the county Public Works Department. The road will be open on weekends.
The county is currently in the middle of a road project in the area that resulted in partial closures.
Public Works Director Warren Lee said the department wanted to get the sewer work completed before paving was finished.
Lee said waste doesn’t flow properly through the area.
“The sewer department knew about the problem,” he said. “Sooner or later it had to be resolved.
“We said, ‘Why don’t we get it resolved now. Get it done at one time.’”
The work was not included in the original contract or the notifications sent out to the public and businesses last month.
As a result, several businesses will not be accessed by car, including a coffee stand with a drive-thru, during the closure.
Noelani Whittington, Public Works information and education specialist, said she was in the process of notifying businesses.
Pedestrian access will remain open. Parking will be available on Aupuni Street and roads behind the shops.
In regards to the timing, Lee said, “You either repair it … or you don’t repair it.
“You got to bite the bullet.”
Traffic will be re-routed, and police officers are expected to assist with directing vehicles, Whittington said.
The Kilauea Avenue project also includes sidewalk repairs, road resurfacing and waterline repairs.
It began Nov. 14 and was expected to be complete in early February.
Lee said that timeline hasn’t changed.
The county awarded the $868,000 project to Yamada and Sons Inc.
Lee said the price will increase by about $50,000 because of the additional work.
Email Tom Callis at tcallis@hawaiitribune-herald.com.
