The University of Hawaii at Manoa will be getting a new building to house graduate students and junior faculty on the school’s campus, according to a news release.
On Thursday, a groundbreaking for the Residences for Graduate Students was held at the construction site on Dole Street between the East-West Center and the Manoa stream, across the street from Frear Hall. UH Manoa Provost Michael Bruno, UH Vice President for Budget and Finance and CFO Kalert Young, and Lt. Gov. Sylvia Luke all attended the event.
“This project is super important to UH as a Research 1 university, because it will for the first time provide housing to our graduate students,” Bruno said.
Construction for the new building begins this month and is scheduled to be completed in fall 2025.
This is UH Manoa’s second public-private partnership to build new student housing facilities. The first public-private partnership is the Residences for Innovative Student Entrepreneurs, which opened in August at the site of the former Atherton YMCA. For the second public-private partnership, Collegiate Housing Foundation, a nonprofit tax exempt organization, will be the owner and operator of the Residences for Graduate Students.
“The ability to execute a second P3 on the heels of RISE is proof of UH’s commitment to finding alternative ways to modernize facilities with minimal cost to the taxpayer and our students and their families,” said UH President David Lassner in a news release.
The building will cost $170 million to construct. CHF is financing the building through tax-exempt bonds that will be repaid with rental income from future students who live at the facility. UH is providing $8 million for pre-development and pre-construction work, with a promise of $2 million a year toward rent abatement to keep rents more affordable, and a 45-year property lease.
The new facility will consist of two buildings — one will be 18 stories, while the other will have 12 stories. In total, the building will have 316 units with 558 beds.
It will include a retail space, bike storage, study rooms, laundry facility, mail and package room, outdoor decks and on-site management.
Also, the building will have a childcare center operated by UH Manoa Children’s Center, which will relocate from its current home at Castle Memorial Hall. Because of the move, UH Manoa Children’s Center will be able to care for more children — from its current 90 children to about 130 children. The State of Hawaii School Facilities Authority has put forward $10 million of public funds toward constructing a childcare center.
Michelle Broder Van Dyke covers the Hawaiian Islands for Spectrum News Hawaii. Email her at michelle.brodervandyke@charter.com.