Categorized | News

State libraries receive $4.15M for improvements

MEDIA RELEASE

Gov. Linda Lingle has released $4,147,000 for improvements at public libraries statewide.

“Public libraries serve an important role in our state. Therefore, they must be kept safe and provide a comfortable educational environment in which our residents and students can read, do research and learn,” Lingle said.

The majority of the funds, $2,570,000, will finance additional design and construction costs for energy efficiency projects at various Hawaii State Public Libraries statewide.

The planned projects include installation of photovoltaic systems and window tinting to control room temperatures and lighting.  In addition, selected libraries will undergo retrocommissioning to systematically optimize building systems so they operate efficiently and effectively.

Retro-commissioning buildings will help reduce operating and utility costs, extend equipment service life and reliability, and reduce the volume of emergency or trouble calls for maintenance staff.

The improvements are expected to be completed by summer 2010.

The energy efficiency improvements at public libraries is part of the Lingle-Aiona Administration’s continuing efforts to make state office buildings and facilities more energy efficient in order to reduce electricity costs and decrease Hawaii’s dependence on imported fossil fuels.

The effort supports the Governor’s Hawaii Clean Energy Initiative, which aims to have 70 percent of Hawaii’s energy come from clean sources by the year 2030, including 40 percent from renewable energy and 30 percent through energy efficient measures.

An additional $1,500,000 will be used to replace the air conditioning towers at the Hawaii State Public Library (Main). The towers are almost 18 years old (average life expectancy is 15-20 years) and in recent years have had numerous problems with leaking water onto the roof of the library, which is not constructed to withstand standing water conditions.

The project is expected to be completed in September 2011.

The governor also released $77,000 in additional construction funds for the replacement of the air conditioning units at Kahului Public Library.  The total estimated cost for the project is $477,000.

The project is scheduled to be completed in July 2010.

Leave a Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

 

Quantcast