Access plan uses
WCC, State HospitalA proposal for entry to the Haiku
Stairs still faces several hurdles
A proposal to get hikers to the Haiku Stairs via the grounds of Windward Community College and the Hawaii State Hospital was unveiled last night at the Kaneohe Neighborhood Board.
Keoki Leong, chairman of the Haiku Stairs Task Force, said he hopes the idea will be accepted by residents of the neighborhood nearest to the now-closed hike who oppose access via the former Coast Guard Omega Station in Haiku Valley.
Under the plan Leong offered last night, hikers could park at the community college and use a proposed fenced path along the eastern edge of the hospital and school campuses.
The path would bring them to an H-3 access road that would connect to the base of the 3,922 metal stairs, which lead to a stunning view from atop the Koolau Mountains.
Hurdles to the plan include:
>> Who would pay for fencing to keep hikers out of the Hawaii State Hospital grounds.The city has not reopened the popular hike since completing $875,000 in repair work in June 2002, because it cannot get people legally to the base of the stairs.>> The college's requirement that parking on its campus be limited to weekends.
>> Whether a nonprofit group, such as the Friends of Haiku Stairs, could supervise public access to the stairs for the city.
Last month, the city offered to trade some of its land in Ewa to the state Department of Hawaiian Home Lands, which owns the 142-acre former Coast Guard facility. DHHL has said it will need several months to review the offer.
Residents nearest the stairs have complained that some hikers have parked vehicles in front of their mailboxes and garbage cans, blocking service. They have also complained of trespassers in their yards leaving trash and using water hoses.
"It seems to be a reasonable option -- not running (hikers) through people's neighborhood," Paul Guggenheim, administrator of the Hawaii State Hospital, said yesterday. But he cautioned that he needs more information before presenting the idea to his boss, state Health Department Director Chiyome Fukino.
WCC Chancellor Angela Meixell said that before she would ask permission from the University of Hawaii Board of Regents to allow weekend access from the campus, she would hold a meeting to get reactions of faculty, staff and students.
Meixell said she would not support weekday parking on campus, because there is not enough for students now.
Leong emphasized that while negotiations for any access to the stairs are ongoing, the hike is still closed.
"Trespassing will disrupt current negotiations," he warned in his presentation to the neighborhood board.
