By Suzanne Roig
Advertiser East Honolulu Bureau
HAWAI‘I KAI — The city and the community want Koko Head District Park closed from 10:30 p.m. to 5 a.m. daily because of recent acts of vandalism and graffiti on the skateboard ramp.
There also have been reports of drinking in the park, said Toni Robinson, East Honolulu district manager.
The Hawai‘i Kai Neighborhood Board will take up the issue at its next meeting, 7 p.m. Tuesday at Hahaione Elementary School.
"There have been problems at the park, especially with teenagers, for a long time," Robinson said. "It has been a problem for many years, not just because of the skateboard ramp."
Graffiti on the skateboard ramp, which opened in December, has been painted over.
Last year, police logged about 50 calls about the park for various complaints, including noise, criminal property damage, parking and fireworks violations, said Iris Fukunaga, Koko Head District Park recreation director. In 1999, there were about 54 complaints, Fukunaga said.
A proposal calls for erecting signs at the park entrances, alerting people that the park is closed between 10:30 p.m. and 5 a.m., Fukunaga said.
The signs would give police the authority to stop people and ask them to leave, said Honolulu Police Capt. Scott Foster.
Without it, officers need probable cause, he said. The police don’t intend to patrol the park or to kick people out of the park who have legitimate business there, Foster said.
Other communities have dealt with closing parks, too. The Kahala community has started the process to close Wai‘alae Beach Park at night because of safety concerns and noise.
Technically, the city cannot close the beach because state law ensures access to the shoreline. However, the city can close the parking lot, keeping people out of the area at night. About 90 O‘ahu parks use parking lot restrictions to effectively close at night.
Terri Christine Peck, a parent, supports the idea of closing Koko Head park at night. She said skateboarders cannot use the park at night anyway because it’s too dark.
She said skateboarders have talked about having one of them paint a mural on the ramp to discourage graffiti.
"I was shocked at the graffiti," Peck said. "I didn’t care for it. The kids are OK with closing the park at night."
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