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Kakaako waterfront watchers are
taking sides on whether Piers 1 and 2
should be developed for ships and
containers or for such projects as
the proposed UH Cancer Center
Honolulu Harbor, the major shipment point for most container traffic that comes and goes into the state, is at the epicenter of a controversy about how Hawaii's finite waterfront resource should be developed.
There is a difference of opinion as to whether Honolulu's main waterfront should be part of the comprehensive plan for the Kakaako area or under the decision-making power of the Hawaii Community Development Authority. Maritime proponents argue that Honolulu Harbor should emphasize cargo shipping, container space and related parking, while the HCDA favors holistic planning designed to meld the waterfront with surrounding community.
The dispute, now decades old, came up during the last legislative session with the introduction of HB 85, which sought to exclude Piers I and 2 from Kakaako's development zone. The bill, supported by the Chamber of Commerce of Hawaii, Young Brothers Ltd., Matson Navigation Co., Hawaii Ship Agents Association, Hawaii Stevedores Inc. and private individuals, ultimately was vetoed by Gov. Linda Lingle last month and is expected to come up again during this legislative session.
The issue also resurfaced earlier this month when the HCDA granted another extension to the University of Hawaii Cancer Research Center, allowing the center to tie up lands needed for harbor expansion, said Sen. Gordon Trimble (R, Downtown-Waikiki), who represents Honolulu's waterfront district.
"We have a conflict between the needs of Hawaii to have space for ships and containers and the desire to create new economic opportunities via the University of Hawaii Medical School, the proposed University of Hawaii Cancer Research Center and emerging biotech industries," Trimble said while surveying Honolulu Harbor from inside a crane overlooking Kakaako's waterfront.
John David Bryant, left, operations manager for Hawaii Stevedores, and Sen. Gordon Trimble (R, Downtown-Waikiki) stand on top of a crane overlooking Piers 1 and 2 at Honolulu Harbor.
"It's about as dense as it can get," said John David Bryant, the operations manager for Hawaii Stevedores. "We've already met our limits and we are starting to experience damages in the yard because of space restrictions,"
Export volume at Honolulu Harbor, which caters to Nippon Yusen Kaisha (NYK Line) and the Philippines, Micronesia and Orient Navigation Company (PM&O Line), has increased about 25 percent annually for the past three years and is expected to continue at that pace, Bryant said.
"We're starting to hit the wall," Bryant said, adding that businesses and consumers alike will suffer if Honolulu's shipping industry fails to thrive.
"All those buildings you see out there are made of steel and concrete and glass and all of it was brought over by cargo ships," Bryant said, pointing to the skyscrapers in Honolulu's financial district.
That's why members of Hawaii's maritime industry and others who rely on shipping for their livelihood say the state's harbor lands, particularly those used for cargo and berthing in Honolulu Harbor, are a finite resource that should be protected, said Anne Stevens, a Kakaako resident and former U.S. Coast Guard resident and shipping agent.
Piers 1 and 2 and its contiguous lands, which comprise 29 acres, must be protected and preserved to provide for an expansion area consistent with the predicted growth of future cargo requirements and to provide for safe, efficient berthing of major cargo vessels, Stevens said.
Because of homeland security requirements, dual jurisdiction of Honolulu Harbor between HCDA and the state Harbors Division is no longer feasible, she said.
Terminal operations in many ports around the United States and internationally effectively combine cargo and cruise operations -- and so can Honolulu Harbor, she said.
"What cannot be done is to turn this valuable maritime space over to developers who envision hotels, condos and shops on the property," Stevens said.
Wise development of Kakaako's prime waterfront lands are key to turning the industrial zone into a walkable community that boosts the state's visitor industry and accommodates the growth of new industries, said Daniel Dinell, HCDA executive director.
HCDA oversees 670 acres in Kakaako, with the mauka areas spreading all the way from King Street to Ala Moana in width and Piikoi Street to Punchbowl in length, and the makai area from Ala Moana to the sea between Ward Avenue and the Coast Guard station at Pier 4.
Expanding Piers 1 and 2 piecemeal will not resolve the crisis of space for Honolulu's maritime industry, Dinell said. That's why the state Department of Transportation is looking to expand into Sand Island, he said.
"We are very cognizant of the importance of maritime, but we believe that the maritime space problem isn't going to be resolved by adding another 5 to 10 acres of land to Piers 1 and 2," Dinell said.
For the last several decades, many visions for Kakaako's waterfront land have come and gone. Waterfront developers over the years have suggested everything from a Hawaiian superstar museum, an entertainment center large enough to accommodate Cirque du Soleil performances, a research office complex, a bark park, a farmer's market, a ferry terminal, a boutique hotel or a waterfront park complete with tidal pools, interactive fountains and a carousel.
"If you look at Kakaako, our vision includes maritime use, biotech industries and parks," Dinell said. "We believe a very vibrant, diverse mixed use will provide the most, sound planning approach for Kakaako's waterfront."
The authority is currently in the process of selecting a master developer to design an urban village that provides research, retail, entertainment and residential facilities, Dinell said. HCDA will hold an executive session Wednesday to discuss selection of a waterfront developer, he said.
While the HCDA may be shoring up a development contract for Kakaako's waterfront, the planning process for the University of Hawaii's Hawaii Cancer Research Center and clinic in Kakaako has stalled.
"HCDA planning doesn't recognize the importance of Hawaii's shipping industry or they would not have told the cancer center that they deserve a fifth extension," Trimble said. "That's a misuse of valuable harbor lands."
HCDA's position on the cancer center is that the facility is an appropriate fit for Kakaako and will do much to create critical mass for Hawaii's burgeoning biotech industries, Dinell said.
While a cancer research center would be good for Hawaii, there is no need to build it so near Honolulu Harbor, where space is critical and there are few opportunities for expansion, Trimble said.
It's too late to move the UH Medical School, whose Kakaako waterfront location was hotly debated for some 30 years, but there is still time to find another location for the UH cancer center, which also will sit on lands adjacent to Honolulu Harbor, he said.
Waterfront plans for Honolulu Harbor must ensure significant cargo ship and container space now and into the future or it will negatively impact Hawaii's emerging export-based businesses, Trimble said. He singled out Koyo USA Corp., which uses Honolulu Harbor to ship desalinated water to Japan that the company produces at its plant in the state's Natural Energy Laboratory on the Big Island.
Trimble said Koyo USA, one of the companies recognized by the state for being a top exporter, expands and diversifies Hawaii's economy through the export of Hawaii-grown and Hawaii-made products.
"For the first time in my 30-year history Hawaii is actually putting more containers that are full on ships than are being unloaded," Trimble said.
When Koyo USA first began shipping water bottles to Japan in September 2003, it shipped an average of 180, 20-foot containers, said Hiroshi Usami, general manager of Koyo. Now, the expanding company, ships up to 220, 40-foot containers monthly, he said.
"One-hundred percent of our shipping goes through Honolulu Harbor, Usami said. "Shipping represents a large portion of our costs."
As Koyo's business has grown, so too have the company's shipping needs, he said.
"Currently, shipping is very vital to our company," Usami said.
It's important to support exporters like Koyo USA because they help bring costs down for Hawaii consumers and businesses that rely on shipments for consumer goods and business supplies, Bryant said. Shipping companies are able to charge less for their services when they can pick up exports in Hawaii, he said.
"It costs everyone more when they have to send their containers back empty," Bryant said.
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