The land board decided at that time to move forward with privatization and now that the report has been completed, will begin the process again by publishing a request for proposals seeking applicants for a long-term lease for the 10-acre facility.

The land board toured the harbor yesterday with committee members to see where the proposed improvements would be. As the van filled with members of the board pulled into the public parking area near the former heliport area, they were quickly surrounded by a group of about 50 protesters holding homemade anti-privatization signs. Some of them threw water on the vans and shouted at the board members, who quickly drove away without looking closely at the plans for the site.

During a land board meeting after the tour, board member Kathryn Inouye chastised Noa Napoleon, who represents surfers on the committee, for inciting the protesters and giving the public the impression that the board would be taking away public parking.

"How do you think we are going to react to that?" Inouye said. "It really affects your credibility with me personally."

Napoleon said the protesters were only reacting to what they believe is true — that efforts are being made to take away free public parking when the harbor is privatized.

The land board has the options of accepting the entire committee report for inclusion in its request for proposals, accepting sections of the document or rejecting it altogether.

Gilbert Coloma-Agaran, chairman of the land board, said the request for proposals will be advertised and responses evaluated by the end of the year.

The 12-member committee detailed its vision for the harbor in the report along with its wish list for improvements and concerns about the future.

The document's introduction includes a disclaimer stating: "The Ad Hoc Committee will only endorse planning and implementation efforts in the Ala Wai Harbor, whether privatized or not, if the guidelines and recommendation submitted herein are fully endorsed and included in Ala Wai Harbor plan and RFPs."

Committee member Bill Mossman said the disclaimer means the committee will not support privatization of the harbor unless the entire report is included in the request for proposals.

"This will make it harder for them (land board) to throw it in the rubbish can," Mossman said, "which is what they have done in the past."

A letter of dissent from committee members Napoleon and Zelei Abordo is included with the report and objects to the privatization of the harbor, saying it will have a negative impact on the public.

"I don't like the idea of privatization for a number of reasons," Napoleon said. "I side with the Hawai'i Supreme Court judge who said you cannot privatize government services that have been traditionally conducted by the government. (The government was) commissioned to protect this asset on behalf of the public. If you let it go to disrepair and then get to sell it, that is how the public gets disenfranchised of its stake in the political process. Privatization gives them the power to take public lands without public hearing."

The committee's recommendations include:

• Locate all environmentally regulated activities in the boat yard, including repair and maintenance services.

• Develop a pedestrian promenade from the Hilton Hawaiian Village along the first row of marina slips past the boat yard to Ala Moana Beach Park.

• Maintain a "no-build area" at the old heliport site to create a public park.

• Create a covered, landscaped pedestrian walkway along a section of boat slips to improve aesthetics, access and safety for users.

• Keep the fuel dock where it is, but add a restaurant, snack bar or coffee kiosk and tables, and possibly move the harbor master's offices to a second-floor location.

• Keep the nonprofit Hawai'i Yacht Club where it is.

• Develop the harbor master building into a retail area including shops and restaurants, storage, surf board racks and kayak and canoe storage.

• Continue to provide free parking for marina uses and the public.

Other issues the committee suggests include renaming the harbor the Waikiki Marina; naming the proposed park after Duke Kahanamoku (although one member dissented), requiring a prospective lessee to submit development plans prior to any bidding process, and completing an environmental impact statement.

The group also details plans to preserve harbor recreational activities and management.

Efforts to turn the harbor over to private operators have long been a point of contention among various state officials and the people who use or live near the Ala Wai.

The state says that plans to lease the land to private developers would allow for better upkeep of the boat harbor, which is falling into disrepair, and would maximize revenue for the state.

Those who oppose the move say that without proper safeguards, it could also allow for a continuation of the type of overdevelopment plaguing other parts of Waikiki, make slip fees for boaters prohibitive and remove longtime parking considerations for surfers and paddlers.