Goodwill Kapolei

Tropical J's Inc.

Goodwill Kapolei, a boxy concrete building, needed multiple window shade awnings, a large steel entry structure and a smokers’ canopy.

Design was renegotiated through numerous architects at the same firm. Settling on the final frame design required significant redesign from the use of impossibly heavy "rods" and adding rafters not necessary for structure design but intended to reduce the ever-present droop between rafters in a barrel/convex structure. Near the end of the contract negotiations, a large steel structure canopy was added that should have been covered in fabric but steel roofing was added. Nevertheless, days before opening, a fabric banner was added as an entrance sign. Near the end of construction, a large freestanding barrel structure was added to the rear of the building.

Beautifully coordinated fabric and steel structures surround the building, making it a welcoming center to those who are in need.

While not fabric covered, the large entrance steel structure required the bending of heavy S40 square steel that distorted significantly during the bending process, requiring a significant amount of welding intervention to make it work. This significantly enhanced Tropical J's ability to work with heavy steel structures and prepared the company for its next project.