Construction of Kuhio Beach groin to begin

Construction is scheduled to begin Monday on a 95-foot sandbag groin designed to stabilize an erosion hot spot at the Diamond Head end of Waikiki’s Kuhio Beach fronting the Duke Kahanamoku statue.

The state Department of Land and Natural Resources said the $568,000 project aims to temporarily fix the eroded shore in the far eastern corner of the beach at the Royal Hawaiian hotel until a more comprehensive master planning effort for Waikiki Beach is completed.

Erosion at Kuhio Beach periodically exposes an old foundation from the Waikiki Tavern, which was built in 1928 and demolished in 1962.

In a news release Wednesday, DLNR Chairwoman Suzanne Case said the latest measure would make an immediate impact in stopping the erosion and represents a key first step toward more proactive and comprehensive beach management of Hawaii’s most popular beach.

Half of the project is being paid for by the Waikiki Beach Special Improvement District through a special Waikiki commercial property tax assessment.

“The Waikiki Beach Special Improvement District is excited to see this project get underway just in time for the winter break,” Rick Egged, president of the Waikiki Beach Special Improvement District Association, said in the news release.

The state Legislature this year allocated $13 million for Waikiki Beach. In addition to the Kuhio Beach project, the money will fund repairs to the Royal Hawaiian groin, located between the Waikiki Sheraton and Royal Hawaiian hotels in a project expected to be completed next year.

The funding also is underwriting the creation of a Waikiki Beach Master Plan, which is now being developed by DLNR, Hawaii Sea Grant and the Waikiki Beach Special Improvement District Association.

According to a University of Hawaii at Manoa economic impact analysis report, the state could lose more than $2 million in visitor spending and related revenue each year if Waikiki Beach was allowed to completely erode.

A construction staging area will block off part of Kuhio Beach during the two- to three-weeklong project, but community access to the shoreline will be maintained, officials said.

The project calls for an 18 foot wide by 4.3 foot high sandbag groin extending seaward perpendicular to the shore at a location 140 feet west of the Kuhio Ewa swim basin groin. About 60% of the groin will be buried within the beach face and extend into the ocean 30 to 40 feet.

The plan, officials said, includes the transfer of 700 cubic yards of sand from the Diamond Head swim basin area to nourish the eroded beach after the groin is built.

The groin will consist of 68 geotextile ElcoRock sand bags weighing about 10,000 pounds each when full of sand. Each sandbag will be filled on the beach with 225 cubic yards of sand, according to the plan.

Officials said the sandbags will be stacked to the minimum size allowable and still provide effective erosion control, trapping sand that would otherwise flow past the area.

The project’s consultant and engineering designer is Sea Engineering Inc and the construction contractor is JS International, Inc.