After a slight pause during the holidays, nighttime roadwork will restart on Keawe Street beginning Monday.
The major project to improve Kilauea and Keawe between Ponahawai Street and Waianuenue Avenue began last April and has caused portions of the road to close for nighttime construction between 7 p.m. and 5 a.m.
The 16-month-long project is necessary to make improvements to underground water and sewer lines, as well as the quality of the sidewalks and road.
Initial rehabilitation and improvements to the road were expected to cost $12.3 million, with 80% of the cost coming from federal funding and 20% coming from the county.
An additional $2 million for sewer infrastructure and $1.4 million for water lines were added to the project, bringing the total cost to nearly $16 million, according to Sherise Kana‘e-Kane, information and education specialist for the county Department of Public Works.
“The Department of Water Supply is completing their work, and paving of the road still needs to be completed,” Kana‘e-Kane said in an email. “The project has a deadline of August 2024, but we are hoping to complete by April 2024.”
Some downtown Hilo businesses have been affected by the road construction, which requires the closure of parking spaces, sidewalks and traffic lanes beginning at 6:30 p.m.
Keawe Street will not close completely while the Department of Water Supply finishes replacing water lines, but businesses and patrons can expect sections of the road to close when paving starts, according to the DPW.
Construction equipment is being staged at the intersection of Ponahawai and Kilauea. After the project is complete, that space will be turned over to the Hawaii County Department of Parks and Recreation.
For more information, contact DPW by phone at (808) 961-8321, or over email at public_works@hawaiicounty.gov.
Email Kelsey Walling at kwalling@hawaiitribune-herald.com.
