HAWAII | BIG ISLAND

Restoration of Hawaii's quake-damaged Hulihee Palace near

The Associated Press
07:52 AM PDT, June 06, 2007

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With funding lined up and the restoration plan complete, Hulihee Palace officials are hopeful work to repair damage from the Oct. 15, 2006 earthquakes can begin within months.

It likely will take a year, and $1.5 million, to restore the state and national historic landmark, which sits on Kailua Bay on the Big Island and houses a collection of Hawaiian artifacts. The palace, once a favorite vacation spot for Hawaiian royalty, typically welcomes up to 500 visitors daily.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency has committed to picking up 75% of the cost, and the state, which owns the land and building, will cover the remainder, but there have been some private donations to the effort as well.

Glenn Mason, president of Honolulu-based Mason Architects Inc., said the building "was one of the very earliest in Hawaii." The six-room building was built in 1838 of lava rock, coral mortar, stucco and plaster.

Almost every corner of the palace has extensive cracks and other plaster and molding damage. Huge cracks extend up the exterior of the south wall and along the interior walls from the ground up to the second-floor ceiling.

The second floor, which includes the sitting room, Princess Ruth's Room and Kawananakoa Room, is closed to visitors, having received some of the worst damage when chunks of plaster tumbled from the ceilings and strips of molding peeled away from the walls.

Meanwhile, most of the furnishings and artifacts have been placed in storage.

The entry hall and the dining room have reopened for public tours, and a video shows the historical artifacts that usually are on display. Visitors also can view the south-side parlor to see the damage for themselves.