‘Stairway to Heaven’
faces purgatory
of neglectDisagreement over ownership threatens
By John M. Flanigan
plan to repair and maintain
eco-tourism marvelALTHOUGH the Haiku Stairs, aka "Stairway to Heaven," have been around for 50 years, they were virtually unknown until 1981. An episode of "Magnum, P.I." followed by a article in the Star-Bulletin, changed all of that forever.
Subsequently, the Coast Guard was flooded with requests to climb the stairs -- as many as 200 people a day on weekends.
But hikers were not the only ones enthralled by them. Educators made the stairs a living classroom.
The Windward cliffs (which have been designated a National Natural Landmark because of their unique geological and biological features) with their steep and treacherous slopes, support only those organisms that can survive the extreme environmental conditions. The Haiku Stairs are the only way, short of mountain-climbing, to reach them.
Newspapers and television described the stairs as one of the most impressive outdoor experiences available on Oahu, perhaps one of the best anywhere.
The climb is a challenge to the quadriceps, but the view of the Koolaus, ocean and the Windward landscape from any place on the stairs is inspiring. The climb provided even school children with access to the undisturbed native flora of the Koolau range.
Sadly, the Coast Guard closed the stairs to the public in 1987 after a number of cases of vandalism.
An organization which became The Friends of Haiku Stairs quickly grew from a grass-roots effort by people interested in restoring public access to the popular hike. Hundreds of individuals, community leaders, political leaders and members of the military united in writing articles, letters to the editor and to congressional delegates, collecting signatures on petitions and contributing money.
Then H-3 construction began and the efforts of the Friends became, at least temporarily, irrelevant.
Cut to 1997. Officials of the Coast Guard and city, displaying leadership and innovative thinking, team up to bring a process to restore the Haiku Stairs and maintain them in perpetuity.
Councilman Steve Holmes, in whose district the stairs lie, and Mayor Jeremy Harris cooperated in an effort for the city to acquire the stairs.
Harris, in his 1998 State of the City address, noted their enormous ecotourism potential: "We would convert the 'Stairway to Heaven' into a spectacular trek to the top of the Koolau Range for an awe-inspiring view of the Windward Coast and even the Central Plains."
Almost exactly one year ago, on May 15, 1997, the Star-Bulletin ran an article by Gordon Y.K. Pang headlined, "The city wants Haiku Stairs saved and the hiking spot reopened."
Now, one year later, it appears that the dream and promise are about to be lost.
A disagreement concerning ownership of the stairs and changes in the key players is frustrating the original plan. Critical personnel at the Coast Guard have left, replaced by others whose commitment to such community interests has yet to develop.
Their counterparts at the city Parks Department face possible elimination by budget cuts. Who is going to carry out the vision of those who have worked so diligently?
We have lost too much of the quality of life that has made Hawaii a paradise. Now we have a rare opportunity to restore some of it.
Our economy could also benefit in the process, without the environmental cost of another hotel or shopping mall. We offer instead beauty, nature and a real adventure that Disney never dreamed of.
If this great treasure is to be saved, the city and Coast Guard must quickly re-establish the leadership and vision that have brought them so close.
They must get together immediately to resolve the problems that currently hinder the agreement and get the job done. We must not let this opportunity slip away.
John M. Flanigan is president of the Friends of Haiku Stairs.