The opening of Kulanihako’i High School has been pushed back from its tentatively scheduled date of Jan. 18, the state Department of Education announced Friday afternoon.

For now, the high school will continue to operate at its temporary location at Lokelani Intermediate School until further notice and construction work on the new high school site will continue to proceed, the DOE said in a news release. 

A DOE spokesperson said timing for the opening is to be determined. 

The department was hopeful that the school would be allowed to open this month based on a pedestrian safety plan that includes crossing guards at the new Kulanihakoi Street traffic roundabout and school-operated shuttles for students walking to and from school until a grade-separated crossing is completed. 

The grade-separated crossing is a longstanding condition imposed on the project by the state Land Use Commission in 2013. Some community members have also backed the requirement for years and said they didn’t want the school to open without the grade-separated pedestrian crossing for the school mauka of Piilani Highway. 

In the news release Friday, Mayor Richard Bissen Jr. said the county “will not be issuing a temporary certificate of occupancy at this time and will be working very closely with the Department of Education to systematically get through the required steps.”

“We are focused on the fact that the students are the ultimate beneficiary of all of our efforts,” he said. 

The DOE said it is “fully committed to working through all of the necessary requirements to open the school in a safe and timely manner and is working closely” with Bissen’s administration “on the best way forward.” 

The department said it also “continues to work through the necessary steps to ensure the safety of all students.”

“We are at a very important juncture on this,” Bissen said. “The way to get students who want to attend Kulanihako’i into their new school is by the State and the County working together to address critical and necessary requirements.” 

“I’m certain no agency, department, community leader and parent has ever wavered from the need for student safety first and foremost,” Bissen said. 

A roundabout that was built also to help address safety concerns is close to being completed in the area. 

The DOE has tried to get the LUC to eliminate the condition of a grade-separated crossing at least for the initial opening of the school.