Paddlers decry plan
that limits harbor use

KAHULUI, Hawaii » Maui's outrigger canoe clubs are out to sink a portion of a state expansion plan that calls for constructing a new pier for cruise ships in Kahului Harbor.

The proposed 500-foot Pier 2C would wipe out two or three lanes of a race course, while a required 300-foot security buffer zone would effectively end outrigger canoe racing in the harbor.

"A part of me would die," said Diane Ho, head coach of the Hawaiian Canoe Club. "It molded me as a person, just as it molded generations of paddlers. It's always in your blood, and I can't believe the cavalier attitude that is now being promoted by the state."

The paddlers are attacking a draft environmental assessment for the harbor expansion plan that says the impact of the lost racing lanes would be "insignificant."

"This is an out-and-out lie," Karen Chun, a coach with the Na Kai Ewalu Canoe Club, said in comments on the draft assessment sent to the Department of Transportation.

"The construction of Pier 2C will completely eliminate the ability of the canoe paddlers to hold any races and will severely impact their ability to practice in the harbor," she said.

Chun said the clubs are calling for the preparation of a more elaborate environmental impact statement. They also want alternatives for expanding harbor space to be considered, she said.

The draft environmental assessment has also been criticized by others, including Mayor Alan Arakawa's office.

Robert Parsons, the mayor's executive assistant for environmental concerns, faulted the assessment in a number of areas, but said the most glaring omission was the lack of an independently prepared vehicle traffic analysis.

The Pier 2C part of the harbor expansion project still needs to be funded by the Legislature, where the paddlers have a number of supporters.

"I wouldn't want to see any interruption of the canoe activity," Rep. Joe Souki (D, Waihee-Wailuku) said. "I have a negative reaction to that. I would like to fund the improvements, but not if it's going to wipe out the canoe clubs."

Glenn Soma, a planner with the Department of Transportation, said department officials are looking at possibly expanding eastward, toward the Kahului Sewage Treatment Plant. They have had discussions with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, he said.

"Boy, it's a massive undertaking," Soma said of the proposed alternative. "And at this point there isn't enough money or adequate justification."