State to Build $5.8M Saddle Road Baseyard

A new and improved Saddle Road requires a new baseyard to help maintain it, according to a recently released draft environmental assessment.

The state Department of Transportation plans on spending $5.8 million developing the baseyard to be located on a four-acre site near Mauna Kea State Park. The location would be convenient because it is centrally located between the east and west ends of Saddle Road.

The new baseyard is needed because the closest state baseyards are currently in either East or West Hawaii, which makes for significant travel times for transporting staff and equipment to the 47-mile-long Saddle Road. The result, according to the EA prepared by the R.M. Towill Corp. in Honolulu, is only minimal maintenance is accomplished or additional overtime must be paid to workers.

The new baseyard will have work areas, an office, fuel area, “flammable storage area,” and parking. According to the study, construction is expected to begin this fall.

The Highways Division of the state Department of Transportation anticipates a “finding of no significant impact” for the project.