The Kapolei Chamber of Commerce, which supports businesses throughout the West Oahu region, has received $500,000 in federal funding to create the West Oahu Innovation and Entrepreneur Center, an entrepreneurial hub for businesses in the area.
The chamber is one of more than 70 recipients of $530 million in congressional directed spending recently earmarked by U.S. Sen. Brian Schatz to support local nonprofits and projects.
"Our vision is to create a collaborative hub for West Oahu where entrepreneurs can access collaborative working spaces, engage in [networking] opportunities, meet with clients, host events, and seek business resources and technical assistance," Kiran Polk, executive director of the Kapolei Chamber of Commerce, said in a statement. "We are grateful Senator Schatz recognizes the need for these resources in our growing West Oahu community.”
The Kapolei Chamber of Commerce and the Council for Native Hawaii Advancement are partnering to build the center, which aims to reach underserved populations in West Oahu including Native Hawaiians, Pacific Islanders, veterans, kupuna, women and members of the LGBTQ+ communities. Educational resources will be available including business workshops, counseling, big business mentorship for small and micro-business entrepreneurs, and more. The center will likely be open at least five days a week, and the chamber is currently considering locations with Kapolei and Ewa, according to the announcement.
“West Oahu has limited meeting areas for small businesses and lacks the co-working spaces and centralized business center services found in other parts of Oahu,” Polk said. “There is a substantial need for a physical place where businesses can be empowered and encouraged to innovate, stabilize and grow."
The establishment of this center is the first of six priorities by the Chamber’s Business Revitalization Task Force of West Oahu, which was established in 2021 to kickstart economic recovery. Other priorities include identifying ways to optimize the use of vacant lands, improving access to careers in diverse industries, helping small businesses integrate regenerative tourism and advocating for more film production opportunities.
Funding support is still needed to complete the project, and the chamber is actively seeking donations from the community, according to the announcement.
The largest amount of federal funding earmarked by Schatz will go to Schofield Barracks, which will receive $111 million to construct facilities for four companies and a troop aid station. Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam will receive the second largest amount, at more than $103 million to construct three high explosives magazine boxes for long ordnance storage as well as expand perimeter security, as previously reported by PBN.
