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Take two: Hawaii officials once again solicit bids to dispose of the historic Falls of Clyde

Nina Wu
STAR-ADVERTISER / 2019
                                The historic ship docked at Pier 7 was impounded by the state Harbors Division in August 2016.
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STAR-ADVERTISER / 2019

The historic ship docked at Pier 7 was impounded by the state Harbors Division in August 2016.

The Hawaii Department of Transportation has once again put out a bid for the removal of the 142-year-old Falls of Clyde ship from Honolulu Harbor.

The request for proposal released today solicits sealed bids for the “removal of the derelict sailing vessel Falls of Clyde” from the harbor.

The contractor will need to comply with any and all federal, state and county laws, statutes and regulations including, but not limited to environmental and historic preservation acts, as well as consultations with federal agencies and other requirements.

Services must also include facilitating and conducting, if needed, community involvement regarding the DOT’s disposal of the derelict vessel.

Additionally, the DOT director “reserves the right to cancel this Request for Proposals, to reject any or all proposals in whole or in part or to waive any defects in any proposal in the best interest of the State of Hawaii.”

The deadline for bids is 2 p.m. on Aug. 2.

The DOT Harbors Division had originally issued a request for proposals to remove the Falls of Clyde in late April, to the objection of those still trying to save it, with bids due in late May. However, DOT later canceled that solicitation, saying that a review had found “not all state processes were followed.”

The historic ship docked at Pier 7 was impounded by the state Harbors Division in August 2016.

The Friends of Falls of Clyde, a Honolulu-based nonprofit that owns the ship, objected to the assumption that the ship is derelict when it has never abandoned or given up its ownership rights, and said its historic status warrants a public hearing before any decisions are made.

The Friends say Falls of Clyde, once owned by Matson, is the only surviving iron-hulled, four-masted, full-rigged ship remaining out of eight from the Falls Line originally built by Russell & Company in Port Glasgow.

It has been designated a National Historic Monument by the National Park Service.

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