NOAA operations center will honor Inouye

The Pacific Regional Center, which will house Hawaii operations of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, will be renamed the Daniel K. Inouye Regional Center.

The center on Ford Island will house NOAA offices for the weather service, tsunami warning center, fisheries, sanctuaries, marine operations and enforcement.

Inouye, who died in December, was an advocate for the center.

"Dan would be humbled by this kind gesture and I am very pleased that he was able to work with NOAA and the U.S. Navy to build his vision," Irene Hirano Inouye, Inouye’s widow, said in a statement. "The PRC will greatly improve the interoperability of NOAA’s assets in the Pacific and will contribute to the safety and health of Hawaii’s communities and precious ecosystems."

The complex is scheduled to open this year.

Hawaii officials are debating whether to name other local institutions in Inouye’s honor.