Latest news with #Honolulu
Fast Company
an hour ago
- Business
- Fast Company
A winding new bridge connects Honolulu's downtown to the beach
Honolulu's coastal Ala Moana Boulevard is a critical road in the Hawaiian capital, but it's also a major hindrance. With six lanes of fast-moving traffic and few easily accessible crossing points, it's effectively a hurdle between the city and its main public space, Ala Moana Park, and the broad beach there. Now, a stunning new pedestrian bridge has opened to make it easier to cross that rushing road. Winding its way from the edge of downtown Honolulu over the highway to a boat harbor and the corner of Ala Moana Park, the pedestrian bridge is an elegant piece of urban infrastructure, accented by artwork and connected to a series of paths cutting through a lush tropical landscape. It's part of Victoria Ward Park, a two-phase publicly accessible open space connected to Ward Village, the 60-acre mixed use development that aims to redefine the urban realm in this part of the city. Developed by Howard Hughes, Ward Village is a blank slate development on former warehouse land that will add, over the course of decades, more than 5,000 units of housing, nearly 1 million square feet of retail, and more than three acres of public greenspace. Several condo buildings are fully occupied and many future condos are already pre-sold, representing more than $6 billion in revenue, according to Howard Hughes' 2024 annual report. Beyond its Honolulu project, the company made more than $1.75 billion in revenue in 2024, according to Pitchbook. Building a bridge to downtown Greenspace, primarily in the form of Victoria Ward Park, is a key part of the company's strategy for luring residents and businesses, and turning Ward Village into a new model for urban development in Honolulu. 'A goal for Ward Village is to make the overall neighborhood significantly more walkable, comfortable, and safe,' says Doug Johnstone, president of the Hawaii region for Howard Hughes. Born and raised in Honolulu, Johnstone says that while the city is full of world-class amenities, its urban realm can sometimes be lacking. 'It's inherently a little disjointed and difficult to get around,' Johnstone says. That's why the Ward Village development—estimated to cost several billion dollars over a planned implementation period that runs through the 2030s—set aside the space for the park, and spent a considerable amount of time coordinating with state and local officials to get the pedestrian bridge built. Costing a total of $17.8 million, the bridge is technically a project of the state's Department of Transportation. It was mostly funded by a federal grant, and Howard Hughes helped pay for the 20% portion of the budget required from local sources, donating land, funding the bridge design and providing environmental documentation. 'There's a lot of folks wearing different hats that are trying to see it through, and making sure also it's done well aesthetically and experience-wise,' Johnstone says. 'It's complementary to what we're doing in Ward Village, but also something Honolulu can be proud of.' Ocean-to-inland Making the bridge possible is the existence of Victoria Ward Park, which was designed by Vita Planning and Landscape Architecture. The first phase of the park covers 1.4 acres from the edge of Ala Moana Boulevard inland, and is now open. The second phase, covering roughly 2 acres higher inland and more nestled in the Ward Village development, will finish construction later this year. This ocean-to-inland connection became a guiding concept for the Honolulu park's design, according to Don Vita, founder of Vita Planning and Landscape Architecture. 'Going back and forth from the ocean up to the mountains is a very important cultural orientation in Hawaii and that's exactly what we did with the configuration and the location of the park,' he says. The section of the park closest to the ocean is more of a natural experience, inspired by the ecology of the region and the plants that were brought to Hawaii on canoes by its first settlers. Connecting to the pedestrian bridge, there are winding paths that slope up through this section of the park, passing by densely planted section and water features that reference the brackish ponds that would form on the shoreline. A large berm was created at the edge of the park as it approaches Ala Moana Boulevard, referencing the beach sand but also forming a buffer. 'It encloses the space so that you could have this very calming respite from the active urban activities that Honolulu offers,' Vita says. Higher up in the development and bisected by a road, the second section of the park will be more active, with space for vendors, events, and a playground. Having a street go through the space 'at first was kind of a challenge,' Vita says. 'We thought about it and it actually helped to tell the story of a passive and a more active space, and helped define those accordingly.' Creating publicly accessible space has become a strategy for Howard Hughes, which has included more than 270 parks and recreation spaces within its community development projects across the U.S., including in Summerlin, Nevada, and in the Houston area. In Honolulu, the new park space expands that ethos. But it's still in a bit of a gray zone as a privately-owned space that is publicly accessible. Vita says that unique condition influenced the design of the park and he creation of what he calls visual permeability. 'When people feel they're in a place that others are looking at them, they tend to behave a little better,' he says. 'Along with that visual permeability there's actual physical permeability. We made the spaces very free flowing so it doesn't feel you can't come here.' Making a new connection to the beach—and, conversely, reconnecting the beach to the city—is a way of giving downtown residents more access to the natural amenities of the area without expanding the city's developmental footprint or sprawling beyond its edges. 'What we've been doing over the years is trying to really advance smart growth in Honolulu,' Johnstone says. 'We want to really protect the environment and things that make it special and unique… The saying goes, if you want to keep the country country, you need to make the town town. And we're doing a bit of that here.'
Yahoo
5 hours ago
- General
- Yahoo
Kaʻaʻawa collision leaves three in serious condition
HONOLULU (KHON2) — Honolulu Emergency Medical Services responded to a three-car collision in the Kaʻaʻawa area shortly after 3 p.m. on June 1. According to first responders, a 25-year-old male was one of four patients examined at the scene. Miss Hawaiʻi crowns new queen: Miss Kaneʻohe A 21-year-old male, a 56-year-old female and a male estimated to be 40 were also examined at the scene. All patients but the 40-year-old were transported to the hospital in serious condition. The 40-year-old man sustained minor injuries and declined transportation to the hospital. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
5 hours ago
- General
- Yahoo
New changes coming to UH Mānoa campus roads
HONOLULU (KHON2) — Roadwork near the University of Hawaii at Mānoa campus begins on June 2, and people heading to campus in the fall will see quite a few changes including a driving lane reduction, new bike lanes and more crosswalks. The City and County of Honolulu's Complete Streets will begin improvements on Dole Street from St. Louis Drive and Lower Campus Road. Kaʻaʻawa collision leaves three in serious condition Over the winter break, crews laid down the new pavement in the area. 'Now it's time to put down the final striping and we're excited to announce we're going to be making some layout changes to the roadway,' said Renee Espiau, the City and County's Complete Streets Administrator said. 'We drafted them up and saw an opportunity to do new bike lanes from St. Louis Drive to campus and upgrade the bike lanes through the UH campus.' She said there was an overwhelming response for bike lanes and people wanted to bike to campus, but didn't feel safe sharing the order to add more space for bicycles, the four lanes of Dole Street will shrink between Lower Campus Road and East-West Road. 'Right now there's four lanes that run through campus, two lanes in each direction. We're going to be changing it to one lane in each direction with left-turn provisions,' Espiau said. 'So we don't anticipate any impacts to traffic on a normal basis, left turns are really what require that second lane.' She said the remaining space will become bike lane buffer. Download the free KHON2 app for iOS or Android to stay informed on the latest news 'So it won't be immediately next to traveling vehicles anymore, there will be a little bit more space there and hopefully more comfortable for people who are biking in the area,' she added. There will be standard bike lanes between East-West Road and St. Louis Drive. The city says turn lanes will support traffic demands and traffic should not be impacted. According to city and county data, there have been over 40 injuries and one fatality on Dole Street between St. Louis Drive and University Avenue in the last 10 years. Big Island police investigating overnight shooting The fatality occurred on Dole and Donagho Road, and now a new crosswalk will be placed here as well as a pedestrian island. Another pedestrian crosswalk island will be added at Legacy Walk. 'We're also making some upgrades to vehicle lanes, too. We have some left turn provisions at Kanewai Street, so we're hoping to make things out there better for everybody, for pedestrians, people driving and people biking,' Espiau said. Hōkūleʻa's trans-Pacific voyage delayed Several parking spaces on the mauka side of Frank Street and St. Louis Drive will also be removed. The goal is to complete the project by early July, before the start of Fall semester. 'So we ask people to be careful, it is a construction site and if they have feedback on the new striping let us know, we can make adjustments if there are any issues,' she added. For more information on the Dole Street project, read the official plans here. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
News.com.au
7 hours ago
- Business
- News.com.au
Qantas frequent flyers able to cash in points on a trip with Hawaiian Airlines in new partnership
Australians looking to escape the cold are now eligible to cash in their Qantas frequent flyer points on trips with another airline. From Thursday, holidaygoers will be able to book hundreds of thousands of new reward seats across Hawaiian Airlines' global network, spanning all four major Hawaiian Islands, 15 cities in the US and 10 international destinations. Qantas Loyalty chief executive Andrew Glance said the number of classic reward seats booked with partner airlines had doubled in the last five years. 'We know how important it is that we continue to invest in growing our network and provide members with more opportunities to use their points,' he said. 'We know Hawaii is one of the most sought-after destinations for our frequent flyers and the partnership with Hawaiian Airlines will be welcome news for members eyeing up their next overseas trip. 'Our members will be able to use their points to connect to one or all four major Hawaiian Islands or look to build Honolulu into their itinerary as a convenient stopover en route to North America. 'The partnership with Hawaiian Airlines also builds on the recent launch of our direct Melbourne to Honolulu Qantas service in May and gives our members more routes, more choice and more access to travel rewards using their points.' Qantas frequent flyers will also earn points and status credits on Hawaiian Airlines-operated flights for travel to Hawaii and mainland US. The addition of the new reward seats adds to the 20 million already available across Qantas, Jetstar and 45 partner airlines, including Emirates, American Airlines and Cathay Pacific.
Yahoo
7 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
New deal for Qantas frequent flyers
Australians looking to escape the cold are now eligible to cash in their Qantas frequent flyer points on trips with another airline. From Thursday, holidaygoers will be able to book hundreds of thousands of new reward seats across Hawaiian Airlines' global network, spanning all four major Hawaiian Islands, 15 cities in the US and 10 international destinations. Qantas Loyalty chief executive Andrew Glance said the number of classic reward seats booked with partner airlines had doubled in the last five years. 'We know how important it is that we continue to invest in growing our network and provide members with more opportunities to use their points,' he said. 'We know Hawaii is one of the most sought-after destinations for our frequent flyers and the partnership with Hawaiian Airlines will be welcome news for members eyeing up their next overseas trip. 'Our members will be able to use their points to connect to one or all four major Hawaiian Islands or look to build Honolulu into their itinerary as a convenient stopover en route to North America. 'The partnership with Hawaiian Airlines also builds on the recent launch of our direct Melbourne to Honolulu Qantas service in May and gives our members more routes, more choice and more access to travel rewards using their points.' Qantas frequent flyers will also earn points and status credits on Hawaiian Airlines-operated flights for travel to Hawaii and mainland US. The addition of the new reward seats adds to the 20 million already available across Qantas, Jetstar and 45 partner airlines, including Emirates, American Airlines and Cathay Pacific.
