By the end of this year or so, a pavilion built to dry commercial fishing boat nets in Honolulu should be transformed into a job training and community center by a nonprofit helping at-risk teens and young adults.

The nonprofit, Kupu, held a ceremonial groundbreaking for the $6 million project Thursday at the site fronting Kewalo Harbor and an adjacent waterfront park.

Planned improvements to the state-owned building, which Kupu is leasing for $1 a year, include adding exterior walls, a lounge, classroom space, meeting rooms and a commercial kitchen. Bathrooms in the building also will be renovated, and photovoltaic panels will be installed on the roof. Outside, a native plant garden, imu, picnic tables and event space are planned.

“We are not just restoring a building, we are restoring lives and the potential of Hawaii with our Green Jobs Training and Community Center,” Kupu CEO John Leong said in a statement.

Kupu was awarded a lease last year for the 8,400-square- foot building by the Hawaii Community Development Authority, a state agency that built the pavilion in 1989-90. The nonprofit also obtained $2 million for renovation work from the Legislature. The building’s use for net drying was short-lived because of contractions to Hawaii’s fishing fleet and an industry shift to nylon nets.