MEDIA RELEASE

Gov. Linda Lingle has released $17,250,000 to the Department of Education for capital improvement projects (CIP) and new construction at public schools on Maui, Lanai, Hawaii and Oahu.

The four projects are:

* Kihei High School – $8 million will be used to acquire land for a new high school in Kihei, Maui. The campus will support the growing student population in the area. Currently, Kihei area students must commute to Maui High School in Kahului. The release of funds will enable the Department of Land and Natural Resources to proceed with the appraisal of the lands to be purchased. In 2006, Lingle released $700,000 in planning funds. The total cost of the project is estimated at $145.5 million.

* Lanai High and Elementary School – $8 million will go toward the construction of a six-classroom building at Lanai High and Elementary School. The building will include science, general education and special education classrooms. The total cost of the project is estimated at $8,616,000.

* Hilo High School – $1 million has been released for the design and construction of a new gymnasium at Hilo High School. It will also serve the community as an emergency shelter. The governor released $1,100,000 in 2007 for the design of the gym. An additional $10.9 million was released in January 2008 for the construction and equipment. The current gym was built in 1937 and is undersized in comparison with standard high school gyms today. The total cost of the project is estimated at $13 million.

* Webling Elementary School – $250,000 has been released for the construction of two portable classrooms at Webling Elementary School in Aiea. The total cost of the project is estimated to be $872,000. The governor previously released design and construction funds for this project in 2007 and 2009. This additional $250,000 is needed to complete the project.

“As part of our ongoing effort to stimulate the economy and create jobs, we remain focused on accelerating public construction projects, especially the repair and maintenance of our schools as well as new construction to meet the needs of growing communities throughout the state,” Lingle said.

The Lanai High and Hilo High projects are among those targeted by the state as part of a plan launched in December 2008 to accelerate public infrastructure and construction to stimulate the economy and create jobs.

Since the CIP plan was launched, the state has successfully opened bids for, awarded contracts for or started construction on 702 capital improvement projects, totaling $1,683,363,188.