CLIENT
City & County of Honolulu
LOCATION
Kewalo, Honolulu, O‘ahu
SIZE
23 acres
TEAM
AECOM | Snohetta | DTL
AWARDS
2019 AIA Award of Merit
2018 APA Award
Located in the center of Honolulu and adjacent to the historic Thomas Square Park, the Neal S Blasidell Center is situated at an ideal location to attract audiences from both from downtown and Waikīkī. Since its celebrated opening more than 50 years ago, the site has remained relatively unchanged despite its well utilized community spaces and performing venues.
DESCRIPTION
The City currently owns and operates the 22.4–acre Center. Since its construction in 1964, the site has served as a major gathering place for performances and community events. In recent years, the arena has struggled for bookings due to competition from newer and more accessible facilities.
The city selected a consulting team that includes AECOM, WCIT Architecture and Lincoln Center Global of New York to help develop a vision for a self-sustaining cultural and entertainment complex at the site. The city is creating this master plan because most of the facilities at the 22-acre site in Honolulu were built in the 1960’s and are facing increasing maintenance and renovation needs. The facilities often do not meet the needs of users and it faces competition from newer facilities such as the Stan Sheriff Center at the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa and the Hawai‘i Convention Center. This envisions a vibrant new civic space that is respectful to the past, present, and future.
