When DreamHouse High School first opened, it took up temporary residence in the Kapolei Marketplace, with eyes towards a larger, more permanent facility already in mind.
Plans for a new school soon took shape, in partnership with Avalon Development who also provided the land that the facility would be built on.
General contractor Honolulu Builders LLC would build the $16-million project, with a groundbreaking ceremony held on April 3, 2022. Construction got underway in earnest in May of that year.
“We were hired by Avalon [for a] new construction, ground up, build everything top to bottom, including the parking lot, all the site work and then the building,” explains Charlyn Kawachi, project manager for Honolulu Builders.
The building in question is the DreamHouse Center, a three-story, 37,000-square-foot building that would house 400 students — a sizable increase from the 100 the school’s temporary location could handle.
Challenges
“It’s like every other project, it seems like it’s going to be pretty straightforward but there were some challenges along the way,” says Kawachi. Among these challenges were permitting delays as well as delays in procuring permanent electrical power due to supply chain issues.
Honolulu Builders Principal Subbu Venkataraman explains that there were also logistical challenges related to the project site itself, as improvements were simultaneously being made on an adjacent lot. That work impacted how and where Honolulu Builders could place their crane to hoist materials.
Further challenges were presented “because there were multiple elements to build with,” adds Kawachi. “You know, we had 55-foot concrete walls. We had structural steel columns and beams that tied into the walls. We had a lot of aluminum exterior finishes … [T]here was a different range of components that had to all tie in together,” she says, but is quick to add that “it ended up actually working out really well in the end.”
Kawachi goes on to describe the other elements that made the project both a challenge but also special in its design and the uniqueness of the finished product. There is an ‘ulu design on one side of the building, which required “quite a bit of coordination” to ensure its weather-tightness. The building’s interior also has a number of special flairs that impressed Kawachi and Venkatamaran, from a mural on the building’s elevator core to an open atrium where students can watch presentations on a ceiling-high screen.
DreamHouse Center was successfully completed in October 2024. The completed building contains retail space on the first level while the two levels above are for school use. With its completion, DreamHouse has fulfilled its goal of growing into a full middle- and high school for students in grades six through 12.
Bringing the project to completion wasn’t a solo effort, of course, and no one entity did more than another. Kawachi recalls the level of coordination involved throughout the project, especially through the challenging times. “I think the biggest thing is open communication with the owners and, you know, just trying to find solutions that work best, not just for ourselves, but also for the owner and the end user is what we really strive to do,” she says. “You know, we didn’t just look for the easy way out. [We] just really try to make sure we give a good product at the end. That’s the goal.”
Venkataraman praised the working relationship with Avalon, calling them a “fantastic” partner. “They’ve been one of our premier clients for … a long time. And so we have done a lot of projects with them already. I would like to think maybe 10 to 15 projects.
“We know the people, we have a great relationship that’s always been positive for us. We want to continue that.”
Venkataraman still gets calls from the school thanking him and his team for the work they performed to bring this project to fruition and helping realize the school’s ultimate goal.
“I mean, we’re [an] all-for-profit company but to do a project that helps the community, supports education for the local people — I mean, that’s fulfilling”
