Symphony Honolulu tower glass to remain, developer fined
A state agency will allow the shiny glass on the Symphony Honolulu tower to remain, but the developer of the building in Kakaako will pay $1 million to mitigate reflections that can heat up surrounding areas.
The board of the Hawaii Community Development Authority voted Wednesday to accept a $1 million mitigation payment and waive a rule that was supposed to regulate reflectivity of tower glass windows but doesn’t achieve that purpose.
Symphony’s developer, San Diego-based OliverMcMillan, also was ordered to pay a $2,000 fine, which is the maximum allowed for failing to follow HCDA’s glass rule, and reimburse the agency $24,000 it spent on a glass consultant that assisted with the rule violation case.
The glass rule in question limits how much light passes into a building. But glass consultants for the developer and HCDA agreed that this regulation does not affect how much light reflects outward.