COURTESY SKETCH
An architectural rendering of Kuhio Avenue in Waikiki includes widened sidewalks incorporated in the Waikiki Livability Project.
Project aims to improve
‘livability’ of WaikikiPlans hope to balance
transportation issues
with ambience
The late George Kanahele, who promoted Hawaiian cultural values, said that if you make Waikiki attractive to locals, the tourists will come, recalled city Transportation Director Cheryl Soon.
His vision inspired the Waikiki Livability Project, which aims to preserve Waikiki's Hawaiian sense of place, while seeking solutions or compromises in planning, landscaping and transportation.
"If we say it's a nice, attractive or interesting structure or water feature, the tourist will have the same reaction," Soon said.
"If it looks too dark or there's a lot of litter," she said, people will avoid the area.
The city hopes to improve Waikiki's "livability elements," making it pedestrian-friendly, finding solutions to parking, improving residential areas, and creating recreational opportunities for those who live, work and play there.
The city recently completed another round of meetings for Waikiki residents and businesses to hear their concerns and suggestions. After a 2 1/2-year, $600,000 federally funded study, the city will unveil the project's plan this summer.
Many proposals have not been finalized and details need to be worked out, but the project could include:
>> Kuhio Avenue would become Waikiki's "Main Street," where residents and visitors will gather. One idea suggests removing a traffic lane to allow widening the sidewalks on both sides of the street by 6 feet.Some Waikiki residents are opposed to some parts of the project, the most controversial being the Ala Wai bike path.>> Kalakaua Avenue would serve as an event plaza where Waikiki's main attractions will be held. The concept follows the example of Santana Row in San Jose, Calif. One option would be to convert a traffic lane into a pedestrian walkway at night.
>> Ala Wai Boulevard would focus on recreation and culture by building a bicycle path by replacing the mauka lane of traffic and parking.
"I don't think taking away a lane is the answer," said Les Among, a Waikiki Neighborhood Board member. "People are fighting for spaces as it is."
With only about 700 street parking spaces up for grabs, parking is scarce for workers, residents and visitors.
Proposals range from angled parking, shared parking and residential sticker parking to preferred metered parking for residents.
One idea matches supply with demand by creating a database of available parking. This would expand on the Holoholo Parking Program sponsored by the Waikiki Improvement Association, which manages 12,000 spaces and offers affordable parking to residents who visit Waikiki.
Tom Brower, a neighborhood board member, worries that despite residents' opposition, some objectionable ideas may go through. He suspects "a lot of the proposals are driven by the city."
"When it comes to these issues (traffic flow and parking), we never know until it's done," Brower said. "Even when we come up with a plan, it can be changed."
Other projects include upgrading residential areas and converting one-way streets into two-way streets, as well as regulating loading zones and designating some on-street parking spaces as loading zones during certain times.
Waikiki Neighborhood Board Chairman Robert Finley said the board would like to see the project broken down into the individual proposals to present to the community.
The neighborhood board must take a closer look at certain aspects of the project, including the narrowing of Kuhio, which is a busy street for buses and delivery trucks, Finley said.
He acknowledged that the projects still need to be funded, and any improvements to Waikiki should be balanced with the needs of the rest of the city.
Rick Egged of the Waikiki Improvement Association, whose members include landowners, hotels, property managers, businesses and professionals in Waikiki, said the group is generally pleased with the overall project, but has some concerns about specific pieces, including the location of pedestrian pathways.
"Although the concepts are good, some of the specifics are not practical," he said.
Even though the plans are acceptable to the community, they must still be funded.
Once plans are finalized, the city Department of Transportation Services must then narrow down the projects to those it wants to propose for next year's capital improvements projects budget, said transportation planner Brian Suzuki, who has worked on the project since last fall.
"We've had a really contentious budget cycle this time around, so you never really know what might happen," Suzuki said.
