Public access to Coconut Island remains closed in Hilo nearly four months after a county worker drove an 8,000-pound excavator across the pedestrian-only bridge, which partially collapsed into the ocean.

Hawaiʻi County Mayor Kimo Alameda said he expects a temporary bridge to restore access within the next two years. A permanent replacement will follow, he said, likely a year later in 2029. 

The temporary mend is projected to cost up to $2 million. The permanent bridge, to be pursued simultaneously, is estimated at $20 million, the mayor said.

Alameda has fond memories of spending time as a kid on Coconut Island, a 3-acre island off the Waiākea Peninsula along Banyan Drive. He’s not alone. The island, originally known as Mokuola, has been a popular gathering place for families since the 1960s, when the bridge was first built to access it.

Hilo residents told Civil Beat the small island was a go-to spot on the weekends. They’d swim in the clear waters, jump off the rock tower and fish with their families.

That all came to an end in November when the bridge partially collapsed after a county crew tried to drive across it the morning of Nov. 13 for park maintenance after heavy rains. One worker was taken to the hospital as a precaution but no injuries were reported. 

Some locals said they wanted to see access restored as soon as possible. But others weren’t so sure it was worth spending money on the temporary fix.

Luis Cuervo visited the island frequently with his kids when it was open. But he doesn’t want to see money wasted on something temporary if a new bridge will be constructed relatively soon thereafter.

“That’s just wasted money. Just tear it all down,” Cuervo said. “And it’s been fine right now. People swim over there, swim back. They enjoy it. Why put a temporary one?”

‘It’s Not Like Fixing A Car’

A new section of the bridge is a small mend, but it’s not the easiest. 

The bridge is tricky, Alameda said. It’s over the ocean and falls within a special management area and tsunami zone. Coral surrounds the island and the county has to ensure the rebuild doesn’t damage the fragile reef.

That all adds to the timeline and may require environmental studies and make demolishing it harder. 

Planning and designing the temporary bridge is expected to take up much of the two-year timeline. The county is awaiting clearance to hire a consultant who will create a plan for the temporary section, county spokesperson Tom Callis said.

That will detail the environmental clearances needed, verify the integrity of the remaining sections, plan out demolition and installation of the temporary piece and the restoration of utilities that broke. 

It could take up to two months for that list to be finished, Alameda said. Then the county will need to contract a designer, wait for a blueprint, put out a bid for contractors, wait for offers and permits all before getting shovels in the ground. 

“It’s not like fixing a car. If my tire’s flat, I just take it to Goodyear,” Alameda said. “But government, you know, you have to be fair and give everybody a chance.”

The temporary bridge will be similar to that used on the Makea Stream Bridge in Pepeʻekeo. That took 11 months to build after it was closed in 2021 due to damage from Hurricane Lane.

Funds for the $1.5 to $2 million temporary bridge will be taken from within the county – and likely from other projects, Alameda said. 

“Maybe we don’t have to repave certain roads here, maybe we can hold off on repairing a field or a gym,” he said. “We have to kind of take from Peter to give to Paul for this one.”

Hawaiʻi County Council member Dennis “Fresh” Onishi, who represents parts of Hilo including Coconut Island, said he preferred a temporary solution rather than just waiting longer for the permanent bridge. He said he didn’t mind if that meant putting other projects on the backburner.

“It is a major place that people can gather and I feel everybody would be in support,” Onishi said. “But if you was to say, no, just close it down and rebuild a whole new bridge, then I think you would have comments coming in.”

Hilo resident Kathleen Lopez-Cabildo used to run from downtown to the island to take a dip. She said she misses it, but also hopes the break acts as a sign that the county should better maintain the park. When it was open, trash cans were frequently filled, fishing lines were discarded across the island and some people were treating it poorly, she said.

“It is unfortunate, but sometimes the universe creates instances that end up being better for the area in the long run,” Lopez-Cabildo said.

While the county creates the temporary section, planning and design on a new bridge will happen at the same time. The Department of Public Works anticipates being able to bring a consultant on board in about a month, Callis said. The county is also spending this time seeking grants to cover the estimated $20 million price tag. 

The temporary and permanent bridges will still take less time than it took to build the bridge in the first place. The current one took nine years to construct after it was destroyed in the 1960 tidal wave.  

At first the county was unsure it would even rebuild it and considered creating a ferry service to take people back and forth. Exploding costs and vandalism pushed the opening of the $46,000 bridge to February 1969, according to a Hawaiʻi Tribune-Herald story from the time.

Alameda said getting access restored to the island as soon as possible is one of his top priorities.