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The Prince Kūhiō Federal Building, formally the Prince Jonah Kūhiō Kalanianaole Federal Building and United States Courthouse, is the official seat of the United States federal government and its local branches of various agencies and departments in the state of Hawaii. Its address is 300 Ala Moana Boulevard, Honolulu, Hawaii 96850. The building was completed in 1977 with a total of of working space. It houses the
United States District Court for the District of Hawaii The United States District Court for the District of Hawaii (in case citations, D. Haw.) is the principal trial court of the United States Federal Court System in the state of Hawaii. The court's territorial jurisdiction encompasses the stat ...
, the United States Attorney for the District of Hawaii, the
United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit (in case citations, 9th Cir.) is the U.S. federal court of appeals that has appellate jurisdiction over the U.S. district courts in the following federal judicial districts: * District o ...
(Honolulu Division), the offices of Hawaii's
U.S. Senators The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and power ...
, the offices of Hawaii's U.S. Representatives for
Hawaii's 1st congressional district Hawaii's 1st congressional district is a congressional district in the U.S. state of Hawaii. The district is located entirely on the island of Oahu, encompassing the urban areas of the City and County of Honolulu, a consolidated city-county that ...
and Hawaii's 2nd congressional district, and branch offices of the United States Secret Service, United States Probation and Pretrial Services System, Department of Homeland Security,
United States Department of Justice The United States Department of Justice (DOJ), also known as the Justice Department, is a federal executive department of the United States government tasked with the enforcement of federal law and administration of justice in the United State ...
,
Central Intelligence Agency The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA ), known informally as the Agency and historically as the Company, is a civilian foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States, officially tasked with gathering, processing, ...
, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Internal Revenue Service, Department of Veterans Affairs, among other entities. The building was named after Prince
Jonah Kūhiō Kalanianaʻole Jonah Kūhiō Kalanianaʻole (March 26, 1871 – January 7, 1922) was a prince of the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi until it was overthrown by a coalition of American and European businessmen in 1893. He later went on to become a representative in the Te ...
, heir to the throne of the overthrown
Kingdom of Hawaii The Hawaiian Kingdom, or Kingdom of Hawaiʻi ( Hawaiian: ''Ko Hawaiʻi Pae ʻĀina''), was a sovereign state located in the Hawaiian Islands. The country was formed in 1795, when the warrior chief Kamehameha the Great, of the independent islan ...
, who served as Republican territorial delegate to the United States Congress from 1903 through 1922. It was built on part of the former US Army Fort Armstrong, which was named for Samuel C. Armstrong (1839–1893), son of Hawaiian missionaries. Across Ala Moana Boulevard is the Aloha Tower at the Honolulu harbor. Other parts of Fort Armstrong became a container terminal for military supplies. The Prince Kūhiō Building was constructed to replace the aging Federal Court, Customs House and Post Office building fronting
ʻIolani Palace The Iolani Palace ( haw, Hale Aliʻi ʻIolani) was the royal residence of the rulers of the Kingdom of Hawaii beginning with Kamehameha III under the Kamehameha Dynasty (1845) and ending with Queen Liliʻuokalani (1893) under the Kalākaua Dyn ...
and adjacent to Aliiōlani Hale which had been built in 1922 and expanded in 1931. After being mostly vacant, the old building was renovated and put up for sale. The old building was given back to the state of Hawaii and was renamed the King David Kalākaua Building in December 2003. Construction of the Prince Kūhiō Federal Building was not without controversy. The General Services Administration wanted a simple tall office tower, while local architects argued for a building more appropriate to Hawaii. Statutes provided that all buildings between the shoreline and the foot of
Punchbowl Crater Punchbowl Crater is an extinct volcanic tuff cone located in Honolulu, Hawaii. It is the location of the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific. The crater was formed some 75,000 to 100,000 years ago during the secondary activity of the Ho ...
could not be taller than the
Hawaii State Capitol The Hawaii State Capitol is the official statehouse or capitol building of the U.S. state of Hawaii. From its chambers, the executive and legislative branches perform the duties involved in governing the state. The Hawaii State Legislature—com ...
. The federal government, not legally limited by local statutes, defied the statutes and constructed the building as the tallest structure in the path of the capitol building's view of the shoreline. The complex includes ten stories of offices (including a penthouse level), connected by an enclosed bridge to a six-story courthouse building (including basement). The Prince Kūhiō Federal Building was designed by Joseph G.F. Farrell's firm Architects Hawaii. Other government buildings designed by the firm include the capitol building of Palau, which opened in 2006. The building was selected for $121 million of renovations as part of the
American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) (), nicknamed the Recovery Act, was a stimulus package enacted by the 111th U.S. Congress and signed into law by President Barack Obama in February 2009. Developed in response to the Gr ...
. The plan is to make the building more efficient by upgrading its mechanical, electrical, fire-safety, and plumbing systems. It had already been cited as an efficient building by the
Energy Star Energy Star (trademarked ''ENERGY STAR'') is a program run by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) that promotes energy efficiency. The program provides information on the energy consumption of prod ...
program. Traces of
asbestos Asbestos () is a naturally occurring fibrous silicate mineral. There are six types, all of which are composed of long and thin fibrous crystals, each fibre being composed of many microscopic "fibrils" that can be released into the atmosphere ...
were discovered during the first phase. The second phase of construction was approved in March 2011.


Gallery

Prince Kuhio Federal Building - District of Hawaii Courthouse, Honolulu.jpg, Building sign for Prince Kuhio Federal Building Prince Jonah Kuhio Kalanianaole Federal Building.jpg, The building as seen from its eastern corner


References

{{Coord , 21, 18, 13, N, 157, 51, 44, W, type:landmark_region:US-HI , display=title Buildings of the United States government Courthouses in Hawaii Federal courthouses in the United States Government buildings completed in 1977 Buildings and structures in Honolulu County, Hawaii 1977 establishments in Hawaii