After combing through hundreds of scorecards from two public input sessions, the results are in: Honolulu residents remain divided over the best design for a pedestrian bridge spanning the Ala Wai Canal but care deeply about the aesthetics of their city.

On Tuesday, the city released the top five designs selected by the public from 19 bridge designs presented in November. Although a low-profile design received the highest score, plenty of people thought it was too utilitarian and wanted something more lively. 

Opinions on the 19 designs presented to the public varied widely. The word “ugly” appears at least twice in the comments of each of the city’s renderings, sometimes alongside opposing comments that judge the same rendering to be “iconic” or “beautiful.”

Public input can be used to inform contractors’ bids on the project, though that’s not a requirement. The city will evaluate bids based on a variety of factors, including cost, amount of disruption, maintenance requirements and aesthetics.

The city had previously selected a design for the bridge in 2020, but some residents pushed back over the community input process and what they saw as a polarizing design that would block their cherished view of Diamond Head over the canal. 

After a resident who opposed the bridge helped spur a community meeting, the Honolulu City Council added a requirement that more designs be considered.

Now that the top five designs have been identified, the city will form a three-person advisory committee of community stakeholders to help with evaluating the aesthetics of the bids, Department of Transportation Services Director Roger Morton said. It’s unclear who those community stakeholders will be. Morton hopes to have this advisory committee picked in the spring, ahead of the city’s request for proposals going out in the summer. 

The project has been discussed as a way to improve access between Waikīkī and Mōʻiliʻili since before Hawaiʻi was a state. Its current iteration is part of the city’s vision to improve bike and pedestrian infrastructure between the University of Hawaiʻi Mānoa and Waikīkī.

Residents who want to travel between the two areas can currently do so at either end of the canal, along Kapahulu Avenue or McCully Street (or Kalākaua Avenue, or Ala Moana Boulevard). But a mile and a half gap exists in the middle of the canal, stoking demand for a more central option.

The city has budgeted about $63 million for the bridge, a sum many residents have complained is high. About 80% of the funding will come from federal sources. 

Although the Trump administration has been slashing federal funding, Morton said he’s not worried the cuts will impact this specific project.

More than two-thirds of respondents have lived in Hawaiʻi for at least 20 years. About half lived in McCully-Mōʻiliʻili. Eighty percent say they plan to walk or bike over the bridge once it’s built. 

The city aims to finish construction in 2029. Scroll down to see the top five rated designs along with a sampling of their feedback: 

Charrette Participants

Charrette/Workshop Date	Number of Scorecards Returned	Number of Scorecards considered (duplicate, nameless, and interested party scorecards removed)
Wednesday, November 20, 2024	135	116
Saturday, November 23, 2024	121	104
Total	256	220