Fix It! Renovation Of Ala Wai Driving Range Is Months Overdue

Honolulu temporarily closed the municipal driving range at Ala Wai Golf Course at the end of January to embark on a renovation that would revitalize its field and upgrade its irrigation system. At the time, the projected reopening date was sometime in the spring.

Spring came and went, followed by summer, and the range remained closed. Now it’s fall.

“I guess it’s under maintenance,” golfer Jordan White, 28, said. “But it’s been for a while.”

The renovation included an irrigation project to fortify the driving range’s sprinkler system. (Ben Angarone/Civil Beat/2025)

White hasn’t been to Ala Wai Golf Course’s driving range, but not for a lack of trying.

Speaking at the Newtown Driving Range in ʻAiea last week, White said he had intended to hit some balls at Ala Wai Golf Course earlier this year while in town with his fianceé. But when they called to ask about the driving range’s hours of operation, they learned it was closed.

“And then I tried like several weeks later,” he said, “because I’m just wondering, ‘What’s going on over there?’”

Ala Wai is Honolulu’s only city-run golf course with a driving range. It’s located smack-dab in urban Honolulu with an entrance off Kapahulu Avenue and boasts views of both Waikīkī’s skyline and the Koʻolau mountains. Prior to closing for renovation, the driving range was open between 6:30 a.m. and 9 p.m. and was operated by the Hawai‘i State Junior Golf Association/First Tee.

The driving range’s closure coincided with the end of operations by the nonprofit Hawai‘i State Junior Golf Association and its First Tee programs at Ala Wai, the city said in a press release.

The 18-hole golf course, one of the busiest on the island, is still open.

Fellow Newtown Driving Range patron Randy Sonoda, 56, said he used to be a frequent patron at Ala Wai Golf Course’s driving range. Sonoda lives in town and likes to hit balls during his lunch break most days of the week. He got into golf about four or five years ago, he said, and he uses the driving range to practice skills related to his swing.

He learned the Ala Wai driving range was under renovation one day when he showed up and saw a sign announcing its temporary closure, which he thought would be much shorter. Now he drives to Newtown Driving Range.

A sign near the golf course’s entrance notifies people of the driving range renovation project and repairs being done to the golf course’s pedestrian and vehicular access bridges. Another recent project at the golf course, where solar panels were installed above parking stalls, was completed last month. (Ben Angarone/Civil Beat/2025)

Sonoda doesn’t check for reopening updates anymore. He said this project’s delay is on par with his general sense that projects in Hawaiʻi always take longer than expected.

“There’s always hiccups,” he said.

After the driving range reopens, he expects to keep going to Newtown since he likes Newtown’s pricing.

The new projection for the Ala Wai Golf Course’s driving range to reopen is November, city spokesperson Ryan Wilson said in an emailed statement. The city will announce more details including an exact date soon, he said, adding the public can expect longer hours and a new concessionaire to staff the counter and provide the equipment.

“This comes after months of improvements to the beloved range,” he said, “including returfing and repairing the irrigation system.”

Wilson said in a follow-up email that the reason for the delay is the driving range took longer to restore than expected.

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Fix It! is a reader-driven column focused on solving everyday obstacles — the inoperable and the inefficient amenity, the mundane and major facility fail that escapes the attention of government agencies, but affects our quality of life.

Who Is Responsible?

Municipal golf courses fall under the Department of Enterprise Services, and its director is Dita Holifield. Her office number is 808-768-5400.

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