New Wahiawa civic center to emerge from rich history

Dan Nakaso, The Honolulu Star-Advertiser
·3 min read

Sep. 28—Officials on Wednesday broke ground on a new civic center that the Wahiawa community has been asking for since the 1950s.

Officials on Wednesday broke ground on a new civic center that the Wahiawa community has been asking for since the 1950s.

The $76 million Wahiawa Civic Center on the California Avenue site of the old one is scheduled to open in mid-2026 and reunite state and city functions, said state Sen. Donovan Dela Cruz (D, Mililani-Wahiawa-Whitmore Village ).

Dela Cruz has been hearing calls for a new civic center going back 25 years to his time on the Wahiawa-Whitmore Village Neighborhood Board.

The old civic center complex was antiquated, too small and technologically outdated, leading to the departures of key state and city services, Dela Cruz said.

"That building was so old and didn't have the technology for adequate services, " he said. "They grew out of it and that's why city hall, the DMV, police station and courthouse all left."

Once construction of the two-building complex finishes, all of the previous city and state functions will return, except for the Honolulu Police Department's Wahiawa substation, Dela Cruz said.

Hawaii Supreme Court Chief Justice Mark Reck ­tenwald spoke at Wednesday's groundbreaking, which he called "a dream that has been many years in the making. ... We will have two courtrooms instead of one, and be able to provide more services for people who wish to file cases here. And we will have probation officers stationed in the building to better serve clients who live in Wahiawa, Central Oahu and on the North Shore."

One of the courtrooms will be named after District Court Judge Darolyn Lendio Heim, who grew up in Waialua and oversaw Wahiawa's homeless outreach court in the old courthouse before she died in December.

"Judge Lendio Heim often presided here in Wahiawa and was a strong proponent of taking our courts out into the community to meet the needs of the people we serve, " Recktenwald said. "Those values of community engagement and service are an important part of our vision for this building."

While the civic center promises modern technology, its location and history even pre-date the arrival of James Dole, who planted his first pineapples on just an acre of land in 1901, Dela Cruz said.

The 2.96-acre site is bordered by California Avenue, North Cane Street, Kilani Avenue and Lehua Street next to Wahiawa District Park.

California Avenue, one of Wahiawa's main drags, reflects the first farmers from California who were recruited by one of King Kala ­kaua's ministers, who talked up Wahiawa's rich soil to the farmers.

The farmers relocated and grew strawberries, avocado, mangoes and olives—produce that also inspired some of Wahiawa's street names, Dela Cruz said.

"Wahiawa was established as a town in the late 1890s, " Dela Cruz said. "Dole came to Wahiawa much later and didn't start growing pineapple until 1901."