On Dec. 16, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) dedicated its new NOAA Daniel K. Inouye Regional Center, located on Ford Island in Honolulu.
The facility, named for the late Senator Daniel K. Inouye, is the last phase of a campus environment that will house 15 NOAA offices with more than 700 staff, and most of the NOAA assets in Hawaii.
Acting NOAA Administrator Dr. Kathryn Sullivan attended the dedication ceremony, along with the late senator’s wife, Mrs. Irene Hirano Inouye, members of the Hawaii Congressional delegation, as well as Navy, state, and local representatives.
Senator Inouye passed away in December 2012, after a distinguished, nearly 50-year career in the U.S. Senate.
“Senator Inouye was a great friend to NOAA and a great advocate for Hawaiians and our country’s natural resources. It’s fitting that we dedicate this building in his honor as a tribute to his years of public service,” said Kathryn Sullivan, Ph.D., acting under secretary of commerce for oceans and atmosphere and acting NOAA administrator.
The late Senator Inouye, with support from the Hawaii Congressional delegation and the state of Hawaii, led the effort to redevelop Ford Island and secure the necessary funding for a world-class facility to support NOAA’s science, service, and stewardship mission in the Pacific Region. The $331 million project was partially funded under the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act and represents the largest capital facility project in NOAA’s history.
In January 2013, the facility was named in Senator Inouye’s honor, in recognition of his significant contribution to ocean and environmental issues and his steadfast support for the construction of the campus.
The center is a 35-acre parcel on federally owned property and combines new facilities with the historic preservation of four buildings culminating into a campus, which is environmentally sustainable, state of the art, and Leadership in Environmental and Energy Design (LEED) Gold Certified.
As a national historic landmark site, the area seeks to preserve both built and natural resources associated with events of historic and cultural significance.
NOAA’s mission is “to understand and predict changes in the Earth’s environment, from the depths of the ocean to the surface of the sun, and to conserve and manage our coastal and marine resources.” (end)