Safety concerns close
Lyon Arboretum

The University of Hawaii indefinitely closed Lyon Arboretum in Manoa yesterday because its buildings and concrete paths are unsafe.

UH employees, students working on projects and others who do business with the university will continue to have access to the arboretum. The public and volunteers will not be allowed on site.

University officials are worried that termite damage and other structural problems could cause the buildings to collapse, said Carolyn Tanaka, UH spokeswoman. Some of the buildings also have electrical problems, she said.

Most of the buildings are old and already were on the 194-acre upper Manoa Valley site when the university acquired the property in 1953, Tanaka said.

In January, university officials received reports from the staff that there were significant safety issues endangering the staff and the public at the arboretum.

After a preliminary UH investigation, three cottages were shut down.

"Although we have closed the three structures, we are not convinced that all of the health and safety problems have been addressed," said Jim Gaines, UH interim vice president for research.

The remaining five to six buildings are also of concern, Tanaka said.

Structural engineers will conduct an assessment of all the grounds' buildings, greenhouses and open concrete pathways.

Once that is completed, the university will work with the state Department of Land and Natural Resources to correct the problems.

Tanaka said until the assessment is completed, it is unknown how long the arboretum will remain closed.

"We deeply regret the inconvenience caused by the closure of the arboretum, but it is clearly in the best interest of the public to do this at this time," Gaines said.

The staff had been officially notified yesterday but was aware of what was coming, Tanaka said.

The Lyon Arboretum is an independently organized unit within the university that conducts research, instruction and public service in tropical biology and horticulture. It is the only university arboretum in the country in a tropical rain forest, and it contains one of the largest collections of palms of any botanical garden in the world.

The arboretum includes greenhouses, classrooms and an herbarium. It houses a living plant collection that numbers about 15,000 plants of more than 6,000 species and varieties.

Much of the research is focused on native Hawaiian plants, their propagation and restoration of endangered species, Hawaiian ecosystems and ethnobotany of the Hawaiian Islands.

The Hawaiian Sugar Planters Association originally established the arboretum in 1918.