WAIMEA — The county Planning Department announced the winners of the Waimea 400 Student Design Challenge, whose ideas will be integrated and presented during the next round of virtual and in-person community meetings scheduled for June 17 and June 23.
Team Akamai Design placed first, and Team ZZ placed second, in the community-voting contest held in May.
The Waimea 400 Student Design Challenge was to engage students in collaborative design and problem-solving as it relates to land-use planning.
Nine student teams from Waimea High School competed in the challenge to envision the 417-acre parcel referred to as “Waimea 400” between Kekaha and Waimea. Students were asked to review information about the Waimea 400 project site online, consider community preferences for future uses of the parcel and provide conceptual plans for the site.
The community voted between May 6 and May 14 for the two plans they felt were most innovative, considerate of site conditions and most fitting for the West Kaua‘i community.
Sophomores Peyton Siliado III, Dane Lo and Kale Kakuda of Team Akamai won with an in-depth site plan that included housing, community gardens, a solar farm, fruit trees and a BMX bike track.
Seniors Za Zsa DuBose, Denise Dumlao, Cailin Pasion and Kaye Serapio of Team ZZ garnered second place with a detailed and colorful rendition showing a variety of housing types, sports and recreational facilities, pathways, amphitheater, splash pad and ideas for economic development for the West Kaua‘i community.
Prizes for the winning teams were donated by Greg Askew, owner of Ono Pops, and Wanda Irving, shift manager at Ishihara Market in Waimea. All students and coaches received certificates of participation signed by Mayor Derek Kawakami.
“We are so impressed with the high creativity, innovation and professionalism of all the student projects submitted for this competition,” said Kawakami.
“We hope that the students enjoyed working together to plan for the future of this very-real and large community space, and that they will stay involved as the concepts are implemented,” he said. “Mahalo nui loa to team coaches Peyton Siliado II, Jon Lucas and Tiani Kajiwara for working closely with their students and coordinating final submissions with our county project team.”
Some of the ideas from the student projects will be integrated into the conceptual-site-plan alternatives, which will be presented during the next round of virtual community meetings scheduled for Thursday, June 17, from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Registration for this meeting is available at the project website, waimea400.com.
Following the virtual community meeting, the Waimea Public Library will host an outdoor, in-person, talk story session about the conceptual design alternatives on Wednesday, June 23. Please contact the library branch manager, Michelle Young, 338-6848, to attend.
For more information on the Waimea 400 Master Plan, visit waimea400.com or contact the Planning Department at 241-4050 or waimea400@gmail.com.
Anyone needing auxiliary aids/services or other accommodations due to a disability, contact the Planning Department Long Range Planning Division at 241-4050 or waimea400@gmail.com as soon as possible.
