Forum to address parking at Ala Wai Boat Harbor
Star-Bulletin staff
Two new ways of handling parking at the Ala Wai Boat Harbor will be discussed at a public meeting from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. tomorrow in the Ilikai Hotel's Oahu suite conference room, according to state officials.
Surfers and paddlers have complained that workers at Waikiki hotels and construction sites often park in the free lot all day, blocking its intended use for ocean recreation users. And slip-holders at the Ala Wai Boat Harbor have complained of people parking in their reserved, paid parking spaces.
The state Department of Land and Natural Resources' Division of Boating and Ocean Recreation has held at least two public meetings on the issue, most recently in January.
The DLNR sifted through 12 parking concepts submitted at a January meeting and came up with two finalist proposals. Both options would:
» Hire a parking company to manage all vehicles parking at the Ala Wai small boat harbor 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
» Put in a security fence to separate the heliport parking lot from the marina parking lots.
» Close the heliport lot between 10 p.m. and 5 a.m., with vehicles remaining there to be towed.
According to the DLNR, the options being considered are:
» Plan 1, which would have a single gate and toll booth installed at the harbor entrance near the intersection of Dewey Lane and the harbor entrance road. The public would have to pull a tab and pay a fee to park at the harbor. Ocean recreation users would get three hours of free parking at the heliport, with additional time charged at the established rate. Harbor tenants and monthly fee payers would be issued pass cards and stickers for their cars.
» Plan 2, which would have parking lot entry/exit gates and a toll booth at the intersection of Mole A road and the harbor access road, and a toll gate would be put at the entrance of the triangle parking lot.
Parking at the heliport would be posted "For Recreational Users Only." No fees would be collected for heliport parking, but non-ocean recreational users would be subject to towing.
People attending the meeting tomorrow can park at the Ala Wai small boat harbor or any of the hotels in the area.
To find out more about participating in the harbor advisory groups for DLNR harbors across the state, see www.hawaii.gov/dlnr/index-orma.html or call 587-1973.