HILO — With the biggest canoe paddling event of the year kicking off in Hilo Bay on Saturday, downtown traffic is expected to peak this weekend as athletes and fans alike descend on the area.
HILO — With the biggest canoe paddling event of the year kicking off in Hilo Bay on Saturday, downtown traffic is expected to peak this weekend as athletes and fans alike descend on the area.
Hilo is hosting the Hawaii Canoe Racing Association state paddling championships for the first time since 2009. More than 5,000 paddlers from 73 clubs are expected to attend the races, which begin Saturday morning and continue throughout the day.
Because the paddling associations will arrive in Hilo beforehand to set up, road closures begin this morning.
“It’s your regular closure where they’re closing Bayfront at the canoe landing area,” said police Sgt. Robert Pauole, head of Traffic Services Division. Drivers will still be able to access Hawaii Belt Road (Highway 19).
The affected section of Bayfront will reopen on Sunday.
Isemoto Contracting project engineer Jason Tagawa said there would be no construction crews on Kamehameha Avenue on Friday or over the weekend. Work will resume on Monday, he said.
“The traffic pattern will remain the same,” Tagawa said. “Still two lanes.”
Roadwork on Kamehameha began in March 2014 and was delayed this year because of a rainy spring. The project is nearing completion, Tagawa said, although the road still needs to be striped.
Parking for the state championship races is free and located in Wailoa River State Park, past the Kamehameha statue. There will be no parking in the Bayfront lot area.
Aloha Mauhili, Moku O Hawaii association race secretary and treasurer, began securing permits and insurance back in December. The Moku O Hawaii association championship is named for Mauhili’s mother, Aunty Maile, 81, who coordinated the state event the last time it was held in Hilo.
“I’m glad it’s coming back here,” Mauhili said.
Email Ivy Ashe at iashe@hawaiitribune-herald.com.