RISE at UH Mānoa Highlighted as Successful P3 Project at CSI Honolulu’s PBX Expo

January 12, 2023

RISE – or Residences for Innovative Student Entrepreneurs – was highlighted as a successful public- private partnership (P3) at CSI Honolulu’s recent PBX22 expo for the construction and design industries.

The $70 million innovation center/student housing community is under construction across from the flagship UH Mānoa campus.

The PBX panel – “UH RISE-ing: A P3 Success Story” – featured John Han, vice president for administration & CFO of the University of Hawai‘i Foundation; Kalbert Young, vice president for budget and finance & CFO, University of Hawai‘i System; and Mike Lam, Hunt’s senior vice president for the Hawai‘i development division who is overseeing the project. Lance Wilhelm, president of The Wilhelm Group, which is providing construction management services to the project, served as moderator.

During the panel, Young said that “as a P3 project and a university facility, (RISE) could be a replicable model for future projects at the university.”

Hunt has been a trusted long-term development partner for local, state and federal governments and other public institutions for decades.

Through those partnerships, Hunt has completed over 200 P3 university housing and other social- infrastructure projects around the globe to date – creating exceptional value for public-sector partners throughout the design, construction, financing, operations and maintenance phases of projects.

In addition to RISE, Hunt has worked with the UH system in various capacities over the years, including construction and infrastructure improvements to Hawai‘i Community College – Pālamanui. A Hunt subsidiary contributed over $20 million in water, power and sewer work that laid the groundwork for that higher education facility.

When asked by a PBX audience member why Hunt was selected over other competitors, Young explained that Hunt’s proposal was superior in factors including its understanding of design, articulation of the cost and ability to deliver on the university’s goals. In addition, the family of companies under the Hunt umbrella meant Hunt had the potential to bring much more to the project.

RISE is fully funded with private, non-taxpayer money. Hunt, UH and the UH Foundation entered into the P3 to design, build and finance the innovation center. Moss is the general contractor.