Visitors to downtown Hilo now have a colorful new map to guide them as they take in the historic sites. ADVERTISING Visitors to downtown Hilo now have a colorful new map to guide them as they take in the historic
Visitors to downtown Hilo now have a colorful new map to guide them as they take in the historic sites.
Years ago, members of the Hilo Downtown Improvement Association commissioned a black and white drawing featuring 20-or-so historic sites. It was printed out onto 8.5-inch-by-11-inch sheets and given out to visitors, providing them with a handy self-guided tour map, says DIA board member Leslie Sears. It was also available online.
However, “it was sadly out of date,” she said.
Over the years, the map had fallen behind, showing some spots that no longer existed, and failing to keep up with moves, such as the relocation of the Mokupapapa Discovery center, she said.
Then came the past year’s rebranding campaign for the downtown area, including February’s reveal of a spiffy new logo courtesy of Sig Zane, and a new website, www.downtownhilo.com.
At the same time, “we figured the historic walking tour should get revisited and updated,” said DIA board president Jeffrey Mermel.
The Downtown Improvement Association worked in conjunction with the Lyman Museum to update the information and identify locations of historic sites.
Meanwhile, Sears, who operates her own graphic design studio — Les is More Printing & Graphics — out of her home in Kurtistown, was charged with updating the map to be used in promotional materials and hand-out maps around town.
Using Photoshop, she cleaned up the original black and white drawing, which features a mauka view of the town from Hilo Bay. Then, she set to colorizing the map. While trying to adhere to some of the new paint jobs bestowed on the downtown area thanks to the recent Benjamin Moore Paint What Matters facelift in Hilo, she admits to taking some artistic license.
“I based it on the current paint scheme,” she said. “But a lot I just made up to make it look cute. If you look at an aerial of Hilo, you see a lot of similarly colored roofs that are white and pale grey. It didn’t look very engaging.”
The colors help set buildings apart and make them easier to see on the map.
All told, there are 21 sites listed on the walking tour map, beginning at the Mooheau Park and Bus Terminal, and ending with the Palace Theater. Testing reveals that the entire tour takes about an hour to walk, Sears said.
In addition to helping visitors discover Hilo’s hidden treasures, organizers at the DIA hope that the update will put them one step closer to one day having the entire area recognized as a historic district, Mermel said.
The group is also considering one day making an app for mobile devices.
As for the map, Mermel says that each box of 5,000 maps costs about $1,800 to print, and the DIA is looking for more partners to help defray that cost. The first run, which was more expensive because it was the first order, was sponsored by Cafe Pesto, Destination Hilo, Big Island Candies and Subway.
Email Colin M. Stewart at cstewart@hawaiitribune-herald.com.
From the new Hilo Historic Downtown Walking Tour map:
This self-guided walking tour will take about one hour if walked continuously. Please go at your own pace and enjoy exploring historic Hilo!
The 21 stops along the way provide information about the town’s history dating from 1870 to the present. The history of Hilo begins much earlier, however. Circa 1100 AD, the first Hilo inhabitants arrived from Polynesia and lived along the Wailuku and Wailoa Rivers and the shores of Hilo Bay. During the time of ancient Hawaii they farmed, fished, and traded goods.
Changes came to this lifestyle in 1778 with the arrival of the first European explorers, and in 1820 with the arrival of missionaries. Hilo soon became a stopping place for whaling ships, traders, and explorers curious about the active volcanoes.
By the early 1900s a number of wharves had been constructed, the breakwater was begun, and a new railroad system designated Hilo as a center of commerce. Two destructive tsunamis in 1946 and 1960 destroyed the rail system and caused a dramatic shift in the local economy. Today, downtown Hilo is alive and bustling with renewed energy. New and old businesses alike are meeting the challenge of revitalizing our city center while preserving Hilo’s historic character.
Pick up a copy of the walking tour brochure at the first stop, the kiosk at the bus station in Mo’oheau Park.
