Request for Qualifications | Echoes of the Land: A Call for Narrative Playscapes

The Hui Moʻolelo Intergenerational Playscape Project is a visionary initiative to create three (3) permanent, story-grounded playscape installations within public parks across Maui County.

This project follows a "Design & Venue Matching" model. Rather than applying for a specific park, multidisciplinary teams are invited to submit their qualifications and a conceptual approach based on our Hui Moʻolelo story archives. Following a review of the application pool, our community panel will match selected finalists with specific park locations that best align with their design aesthetic and the cultural narratives of that community. 

In a gesture of renewal and resilience, the County of Maui invites (but does not require) design teams to consider the integration of salvaged wood and stumps recovered from the 2023 wildfires in Lahaina and Kula, offering these honored remnants a second life as foundational elements of play and memory within the new playscapes.

Total Project Opportunity: Three (3) distinct commissions.

Capital Budget: $500,000 per site (comprehensive of design, fabrication, and installation).

The Foundation: This is a "listening-first" project. Teams will not collect new stories; instead, they will select from a curated "menu" of recorded community moʻolelo to serve as the conceptual heart of the build.

RFQ Process: Selected finalists may enter a stipended "Refinement Phase" to adapt their concepts to a specific matched venue before final contracts are awarded. Due to the project deadline, we encourage you to be as detailed as possible in your application. 

Project Development Process: Applications will be reviewed by a community panel. Selected team/s will then enter a collaborative development phase, working closely with community members, Maui Public Art Corps, and partners to refine their initial ideas into a site-specific, participatory artwork. This process includes identifying a proverb from Mary Kawena Pukui’s ʻŌlelo No‘eau: Hawaiian Proverbs and Poetical Sayings to ground each work in historical and cultural context.

Application requirements: ​Applications will only be received via CaFÉ and will not be accepted after the marked deadline. Entry Deadline: April 7, 2026 at 11:59 pm HST. 

Apply HERE