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Conceptions for
downtown cultural
district explored

Visions range from 'small is
beautiful' to high-rise housing

---

By Mary Adamski
Star-Bulletin

Ideas for changing a historical but nondescript section of downtown Honolulu into a sparkling arts and entertainment district are being shared with neighborhood businesses and landowners and arts supporters.

A gathering of 50 people at the Hawaii Theatre last night heard visions ranging from development of high-rise housing and a waterfront hotel to creation of small performance spaces interspersed among galleries with loft apartments.

The community meeting was the second session exploring development of the area bounded by Nuuanu Avenue and Fort Street Mall, Beretania Street and Nimitz Highway as a Cultural Improvement District.

"We've all been to places with an area like this that has been made into a jewel instead of an embarrassment," said Kitty Lagareta, president and chief executive officer of Communications-Pacific Inc. She and others cited New York's SoHo, the French Quarter in New Orleans and districts in Portland, Miami and San Francisco.

Last month, the American Institute of Architects took the project on for an intensive design exercise for Architecture Week in July. Five teams of architects, artists and city representatives presented the output yesterday.

"Nuuanu Avenue has the longest stretch of turn-of-the-century street facades in the city," said architect Bob Fox of Fox Hawaii International. "The key is to create a more pedestrian-friendly environment, to widen sidewalks and open spaces."

Richard Senelly of Earthplan said his team's conclusion "was that small is beautiful" and that the existing two- to four-story buildings and narrow streets should be maintained. "We need to plan something in scale that will consider the pedestrian's viewpoint."

But Joe Farrell of Architects Hawaii said another team considered establishing anchors at each end, with "a high-density architectural feature at the top," Beretania and Nuuanu.