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The 77-year-old, termite-damaged dining hall at the busy Camp Maluhia will be replaced by a new facility to be built near the camp’s Longhouse, according to a draft environmental assessment submitted by the Boy Scouts of America Maui County Council.

“We can only put Band Aids on for so long,” Robert Nakagawa, Maui County Boy Scouts executive director, said last week.

There is “significant termite damage,” which has forced structural reinforcement of the building, he said.

The new dining hall will be relocated down the hill from the current facility to near the Longhouse, pool and campground cabins, said the draft report that appeared in the Jan. 23 issue of the Office of Environmental Quality Control’s “The Environmental Notice.”

“It’s a lot more centrally located to everything,” Nakagawa added.

The proposed structure, to be built in a slope on the hilly camp terrain, will be about 7,500 square feet with a 1,400-square-foot kitchen, 3,300-square-foot dining room and a 500-square-foot restroom on the main level, accessible by the current roadway through the camp, and a 2,300-square-foot open area on the lower level, the draft report said.

There will be a wraparound deck on the main level to allow dining outside, Nakagawa said. He added that the restroom in the facility will be an upgrade, because the old dining room does not have one.

The tentative plan for the old dining room, “down the road,” is to turn it into a science, technology, engineering and math facility for activities including robotics and environmental science projects, Nakagawa said. He was not sure if the facility will be a tear-down-rebuild project or a renovation, but he added that historic preservation officials would prefer that the Boy Scouts rehabilitate the structure, built in 1938.

The dining room project actually will be the final piece of the Boy Scouts current improvement program at the camp, owned and operated by the Boy Scouts since built in the 1930s. The camp is occupied 60 percent of the year and 95 percent of weekends, “making it one of the most regularly used Scout camps nationally,” the draft report said.

Other projects that will come first include upgrades to fire protection and existing domestic water systems, reroofing of cabins and bathroom improvements, said Nakagawa. The entire cost of the improvements, including the dining hall, is about $11 million, he said.

The dining hall and water system improvements alone are $6 million, the draft report said.

Funds have been secured for the fire-suppression system, which will cost $1.75 million, and includes a water tank, said Nakagawa. He expects the project to be completed before the end of the year.

Other projects will proceed as money is raised, he said.

“We’re millions away,” he said. “As we get funding, we continue to move the ball forward.”

In addition to those improvements, the state Department of Land and Natural Resources Division of Forestry and Wildlife plans to build a new parking lot for hikers using the Waihee Ridge Trail. Its trailhead is on the way to the camp. There is no parking for hikers, who use Camp Maluhia’s gravel parking lots.

The parking situation has created issues for the camp, which has reported loitering, littering and drug and alcohol use in its parking lots. The building of the new parking lot for trail users will allow the camp to install gates to secure its two parking lots, the draft report said.

The entire project will require a county special use permit, off-site parking approval, parking variance and construction permits, the draft report said.

The draft report noted no major environmental, economic or archaeological impacts from the project.

The deadline for comments on the draft environmental assessment is Feb. 23.

Comments may be sent to the approving agency, the state Department of Land and Natural Resources, 54 S. High St., Wailuku 96793, the contact is Daniel Ornellas (984-8103); or the consultant Munekiyo & Hiraga, 305 High St., Suite 104, Wailuku 96793, the contact is Michael Munekiyo (244-2015).

The draft environmental assessment may be downloaded from oeqc.doh.hawaii.gov/Shared Documents/Environmental_Notice/current_issue.pdf.

* Lee Imada can be reached at leeimada@mauinews.com.

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