The $1.5 million Kihei Recycling and Redemption Center on Maui was opened today following a blessing ceremony.

The facility on Welakahao Road off Pi'ilani Highway was paid for with 40 percent State of Hawai'i "Bottle Bill" funding and 60 percent Maui County funds. It features solar-powered lighting, landscaping and a locked gate monitored by patrol security.

The center will accept HI-5 beverage containers as well as plastic bottles with necks, plastic bags, glass containers, aluminum cans, clean rinsed food cans, cardboard, paper bags and newspaper.

The center will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily, with HI-5 redemption center hours set for Wednesday through Sunday from 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. The facility will be closed from 1-2 p.m. daily for lunch.

"This facility will be a flagship for our county, and probably for the state," Maui Mayor Charmaine Tavares said. "It is convenient and safe, and provides a much-needed service for our residents and visitors that will go a long way in caring for our environment."

Tavares today also accepted the keys to the new "comfort station" at Kamaole Beach Park III from Bob Armstrong, managing member of developer Kai Malu Wailea LLC. The developer paid for the restroom facility as part of a conditional SMA permit for the 150-unit Kai Malu at Wailea resort condominium project.

The 640 square-foot, $550,000 facility features one ADA-compliant toilet stall, three additional toilets and one sink in the women's restroom, one ADA-compliant toilet stall, an additional toilet, two urinals and one sink on the men's side, a storage room and a janitor's closet with sink.