Student housing for most freshmen on the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa campus received a major upgrade over the summer of 2024. The lobbies and common areas of the four, 13-story Hale Aloha Towers underwent an extensive renovation. The towers are home to 1,040 freshmen each school year, just under a third of the 3,400 student residents at UH Mānoa.
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“These renovations, and all of the recent improvements at student housing, are meant to enhance the overall living experience by creating more inviting spaces for our students,” said UH Mānoa Student Housing Services Director David Akana. “The hope is that the new common areas will help foster a sense of community among residents, encouraging interaction and collaboration.”
Floor to ceiling improvements
The project includes polished concrete flooring, improved lighting, ceiling fans and new furniture in the lobbies, mid-floor common area and 13th floor recreation deck activity lounge of the four towers. There are still some pieces of furniture scheduled for delivery with everything expected to be installed by the end of October.
“I actually had a few people come over to see the renovations and they said that they were very jealous that it wasn’t as nice when they lived there,” said sophomore Camille Downey, a resident assistant in Hale Aloha Mokihana tower. “It looks like a lot of people are gonna be happy living in the building, the better quality of life and whenever you come back from classes, a better place to study and live.”
Hang out, study, collaborate
The renovated lobbies are larger with new furniture and big screen TVs. The mid-floor common area on the even-numbered floors have new wood benches, additional power outlets, lounge seating, work tables and whiteboards to better support group studying and gatherings.
The common areas and kitchens on the 13th floor of each tower features new lounge seating, lawn chairs, picnic and work tables, a big screen TV and a foosball table. The kitchens have been expanded with a built-in counter along the walls, a family-style stainless steel table in the center and new appliances and stainless steel countertops. The study lounges have new study cubicles, chairs and lounge seating.
“I feel like everybody is going to be in the lobby watching TV, with the fans, and we’ll maybe even have programs there for people to meet up,” said Downey. “I think it will be a really good space for people whenever they come into the building.”
Each tower now has its own splash of color, inspired by the island flower the tower is named after, on the columns in the first floor lobbies, as well as on the 13th floor activity lounges and kitchens. Shades of yellow and gold for Hale Aloha ʻIlima, bold reds for Hale Aloha Lehua, tones of mauve and purple for Hale Aloha Lokelani and lime greens for Hale Aloha Mokihana. The walls also feature a Sig Zane designed graphic indicating the building name.
The renovation project was based in part by input from student residents during interactive workshops held in December 2023.
Wave of improvements
Another recent improvement is the installation of more than 1,400 brand new, energy efficient microfridges (combination microwave/refrigerators) in all of the rooms and/or suite areas except for the Hale Wainani apartments.
This follows the installation of water filling stations in early 2024 in each of the student housing communities and the opening of a new Starbucks in January 2024 in the Gateway Café. Improvements made in 2023 include new mattresses; improved WiFi; repairs to hundreds of windows, bed frames and air conditioning units and much more.
