With the latest phase of the Hilo Bayfront Trails project completed, work on the next phases is expected to begin by next spring.
While the first phase of the project — which connected Mooheau Park, Pauahi Street, the Bayfront canoe hale, and the Bayfront soccer fields — was completed in 2016, work on a second phase to connect Kilauea Avenue to the soccer fields trail built in Phase 1 didn’t begin until earlier this year.
Matthias Kusch, president of Hilo Bayfront Trails and a County Council candidate, said the long delay in setting up Phase 2 was because of the involvement of federal funds in the project.
“This is all pretty simple,” Kusch said Wednesday at a dedication for the newly completed Phase 2 trail. “But when you get federal money involved, it makes it so much more complicated. We even had to deal with the (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) Fisheries, and I don’t think this trail is affecting any turtles.”
The Phase 2 trail cost $576,000, 50% of which came from a grant from the National Park Service, $65,000 from private donors and the rest from Hawaii County.
However, Kusch said the federal funds for the next phase — an $860,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation —have already been encumbered, adding that construction could begin by next spring, depending on how the bidding process goes.
The next phase — dubbed “Phase 2A,” because it was initially included within the second phase itself before being set apart for funding reasons — will include another trail near the soccer fields connecting the Wailoa River State Recreation Area’s Kamehameha Avenue entrance to Pauahi Street, as well as additional features such as an ADA-accessible ramp connecting the Phase 2 trail directly to the nearby Ben Franklin parking lot.
Because the start of the trail at Kilauea Avenue is approximately the same location where the former Hilo railroad began on its path to Hilo Sugar Mill, Kusch said he hopes to eventually provide historical references along the trails to commemorate the history of the area.
But Phase 2A isn’t the last phase of the project. Kusch said plans for a third phase, which would connect the Phase 1 trail to Kilauea Avenue and create a contiguous loop from downtown Hilo to Aupuni Center and beyond, are being actively worked on.
“We’re also hoping to do a Banyan Drive loop,” Kusch said. “And hopefully, we could get that to coincide with the work on Kalanianaole Avenue getting finished, and eventually we’ll be able to serve (the Panaewa area) and people will be able to walk all the way from Keaukaha.”
Mayor Mitch Roth, attending the dedication on Wednesday, praised Kusch’s work for its ability to improve the health and walkability of the Hilo community.
Kusch, in turn, thanked Roth for working closely on the project to improve communication between county departments and the several federal agencies involved.
“This will be here for 100 years,” Kusch said.
Email Michael Brestovansky at mbrestovansky@hawaiitribune-herald.com.