Ka Leo O Hawaii

Issue date: 6/25/08 Section: News

Media Credit: Kent Nishimura After a $3.1 million renovation, the arboretum has re-opened its doors to the public sporting some new improvements. [Click to enlarge]

The University of Hawai'i's Harold L. Lyon Arboretum Visitor Center was reopened June 14, after being closed for two years for renovations.

The state Legislature appropriated $3.1 million for improvements to address the center's safety issues, including a termite problem. New lighting, plumbing, flooring and toilets were installed. The gift shop was also refurbished.

According to the arboretum's director, Dr. Christopher Dunn, many of the buildings of arboretum date back to the 1920s.

"We just made it a brighter, more comfortable, safer and more modern building," Dunn said.

The celebration was supported in part by the Lyon Arboretum Association. About 80 people attended, including the association's president Margaret Armstrong, as well as Rep. Kirk Caldwell and Sen. Brian Taniguchi. Kahu Kaleo Patterson led a traditional blessing ceremony.

Making the place more ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) compatible was another modification.

"We had two handicap-accessible washroom facilities and a new ADA compatible ramped walkway that takes people from the upper level of the building (where the parking lot is located) to the lower level," Dunn said.

Future plans include revitalizing the arboretum's garden. Five cottages at the Lyon Arboretum will be renovated, according to Dunn, including two that were recently demolished. One cottage will house a children's education program, while the other will provide offices and facilities for the arboretum's grounds crew.

The Lyon Arboretum receives about 34,000 visitors yearly and continues to serve as a place for student and faculty research, as well as an outreach tool, with plant conservation and educational programs.

The Arboretum was given to UH Mānoa in 1953 with the intent of its founder and botanist Dr. Harold L. Lyon to "maintain and preserve the granted premises as an arboretum and botanical garden only."

"There's no other tropical rainforest within five miles or a short driving distance of Honolulu," Dunn said. "What we want to do is be a place that reflects what Hawaiian nature was and still is and inspire people to become more interested in plants and conservation."

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