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Water Ways Ray Pendleton |
Time to pay for neglect
of marinas
Will 2005 be the year of the mooring-fee increase for Hawaii's boaters?As I have noted here for at least a decade, the boat owners in our state-run marinas (or "small boat harbors" as the Division of Boating and Ocean Recreation calls them) have been paying the lowest rates in the civilized world.
At first blush, that sounds like a wonderful thing for the boaters, and in some cases, it has been. But, as the income from those slips hasn't kept up with the marina maintenance expenses and capital improvement debt service, those low rates have resulted in a statewide meltdown of the facilities.
Row after row of slips in marinas across the state have disintegrated and been condemned rather than replaced. That's left Hawaii's boaters with fewer moorings, and at a time when the demand has been on an upswing everywhere.
More than one waterfront wag has pointed out that at the present rate of decline, our public marinas will be completely slip-free by 2014.
Still, there is a glimmer of hope for the future because Richard Rice, the new head of DBOR, is proposing a new fee structure for our state's recreational boating facilities.
It would mark the first increase of any kind since March 1995, and during the same period, Hawaii's Consumer Price Index went up more than 32 percent.
This new proposal reflects that increase in the CPI by suggesting similar increases in mooring fees, but with adjustments with regard to "each harbor's unique circumstances and available services."
To make these adjustments equitable, DBOR has grouped its harbors into five categories, or "levels" that reflect such similarities as their demand and location, and the facilities and services available.
Ala Wai harbor -- at the top of the list and with the highest rates -- stands alone because of its location in a dense urban center and the greater availability of related services there.
"Base" mooring fees may rise there from $4.10 to $5.25 per foot of boat length per month, if these changes are approved. (The term "base" indicates that DBOR is also asking for an additional 8 percent in each of the next two years to finance capital improvement projects, if approved by the legislature.)
The second harbor level consists of Keehi, Honokohau, Maalaea and Lahaina.
There, base fees would go up from the present $2.85 to $3.50 per foot a month, to $4 across the board.
Oahu's Haleiwa, Heeia Kea and Waianae harbors, along with several on the other islands, fall into the third level and would see their base fees rise from $2.80 to $3.75 a month.
The fourth and fifth levels includes such harbors as Molokai's Kaunakakai and Hale O Lono, and due to their small size and lack of facilities, the new rates will be in the $1.50 to $3.50 range.
As modest as these new mooring rates are, I'm sure there will be those who complain. But without the increases, within a few years, I doubt there will be anything to complain about.
His column runs Saturdays in the Star-Bulletin.
He can be reached by e-mail at raypendleton@mac.com.