UH Health and Wellness Center Phase I on Track

Only 12 Schools Selected throughout the United States

University of Hawaiʻi
Contact:
Shawn Nakamoto, (808) 956-9095
University and Community Relations
Kristen Cabral, (808) 956-5039
University and Community Relations
Posted: Jan 23, 2002

The University of Hawaiʻi has taken a critical step toward
construction of the new Health and Wellness Center in Kakaʻako — on track
with the aggressive timetable established after the legislature approved funding
for the project in October.



Three joint venture partnerships have been short-listed to receive the Request
for Proposals (RFP) for pre-construction and construction services for Phase
I of the Center. They are ACK + McCarthy, a joint venture; Hawaiian Dredging/Kajima,
a joint venture; and Kiewit/DPR, a joint venture.



"We are still on target to break ground for the project in the fall of
this year and complete Phase I construction within three years," said Deane
Neubauer, Interim Chancellor for UH Manoa. "This fulfills our pledge to
the legislature and to the Governor that the university will do whatever it
can to stimulate the state‘s economy through this significant investment
in human and intellectual capital."



Prospective general contractors responded earlier this month to a request for
qualifications (RFQ) published in December. The three qualified entities —
selected from a total of thirteen companies who replied to the RFQ — were
named today after review by a Health and Wellness Development Advisory Committee,
appointed jointly in December by UH President Evan S. Dobelle, medical school
Dean Edwin S. Cadman and UH Cancer Research Center Director Carl-Wilhelm Vogel.


Dean Cadman chairs the Development Advisory Committee, which represents a broad
perspective of community interests. "It is critical that this project move
forward as a total community effort since the new facility will have a tremendous
positive impact on all of us," Cadman said. "We are well underway
in turning challenges and opportunities into reality."



In the next part of the two-stage process, the short-listed General Contractors
will now respond to the RFP due February 15. Selection of the General Contractor
to proceed with the project is expected in mid-March.



The construction plan would have the designated General Contractor in a proactive
role in the pre-construction phase — assisting the architect and engineers
in overall project development in a "design/assist" process.



"Since we will have the contractor involved in the early stages of the
project design, we should be able to reduce and control costs," Dean Cadman
said. "The team approach — contractor, architect and engineer —
should minimize change orders and allow us to work much more quickly."




Phase I of the Health and Wellness Center will consist of the John A. Burns
School of Medicine and related educational and administrative offices, laboratories
and support facilities. Site development will also include surface parking and
a centralized mechanical plant. Construction costs for Phase I are expected
to be in the $100-120 million range.



The UH Cancer Research Center will also be a Phase I tenant as planning proceeds
for the Center‘s permanent relocation to Kakaʻako from its site adjacent
to Queen‘s Medical Center. "We are looking forward to being a part
of this venture," said director Carl-Wilhelm Vogel. "With the move
to Kakaʻako, we will be in a position to compete much more aggressively for
additional research funds for our excellent programs." Vogel said that
a full day Charrette (intensive planning exercise) is scheduled for the Cancer
Center construction at the end of January.



In addition to permanently co-locating the Cancer Research Center in Kakaʻako,
later phases of the project call for renovation of the existing Biomedical Sciences
building at UH Manoa, and creating a Center for Biotechnology at Kakaʻako.



Health and Wellness Center Development Advisory Committee



Dr. Edwin C. Cadman, Dean, John A. Burns School of Medicine — Chairperson

Bruce Coppa, Pacific Resources Partnership

H. Mitchell D‘Olier, Victoria Ward, Ltd.

Linda M. Fernandez, Fernandez Entertainment, Inc.

Randall Fujiki, AIA, City & County of Honolulu

Kalowena Komeiji, Hawaiʻi Public Television

Richard Lim, City Bank

Duncan MacNaughton, The MacNaughton Group

Dr. Hamilton McCubbin, Kamehameha Schools

James G. Freeman, AIA Honolulu Chapter

Dr. Carl-Wilhelm Vogel, Director, Cancer Research Center of Hawaiʻi

Donna Tanoue, Goodsill Anderson Quinn & Stifel

Norma Wong

Dr. W.H. Raymond Yeh, Dean, UH School of Architecture