UH seeks firms
for bioscience facility

Developers are being solicited
for the Kakaako site

The University of Hawaii has started the selection process for a developer for a bioscience research facility next to the new medical school at Kakaako.

A 190,000-square-foot area is designated for Phase II of the John A. Burns School of Medicine, opening classes April 4 for about 240 students. They have been meeting at Tokai University since the biomedical building was flooded on the Manoa Campus.

Now being used for parking, the vacant site is located between the new medical school's completed administration and education building and the waterfront park.

The area initially was anticipated for a new Hawaii Cancer Research Center and clinic, now slated for development on a 5.5-acre site Ewa of the medical school's research building.

Jan Yokota, UH director of capital improvements, said her office is seeking "expressions of interest and statements of qualifications" from firms to develop the bioscience research facility.

UH is looking for a private developer to build and run the facility, with the university and possibly private companies leasing the space, she said.

That's the process being followed for construction of the new Cancer Research Center instead of financing with state money.

"We had very strong response from well-qualified developers for the Cancer Research Center," Yokota said.

One of three finalists will be recommended to the Board of Regents at a special meeting at 2 p.m. March 30 at Leeward Community College, she said.

The deadline for developers to submit qualifications for the bioscience research facility is 5 p.m. May 27.

Components could include more research space for the medical school and other UH units, private leasable space for bioscience companies and an incubation facility for emerging life science companies, Yokota said.

"Those are just possibilities," she added. "It could be one or all three."

The requests for qualifications are aimed at selecting a developer for a comprehensive agreement, including planning, design, finance, construction and management of the project in a two-step process.

After developers have submitted the required documents, three to five of those most qualified will be invited to submit proposals to develop the facility.

One developer will be recommended to the Board of Regents for approval.