Boat harbor privatization criticized
By Gordon Y.K. Pang
Advertiser Capitol Bureau
A resolution authorizing the Department of Land and Natural Resources to privatize the "submerged lands" at Honokohau Small Boat Harbor in North Kona has cleared the Senate Committee on Water, Land and Agriculture despite warnings by environmentalists and boaters that it would set a bad precedent.
Existing laws allow the department, with approval of the Board of Land and Natural Resources, to lease the "fast lands," or above-water portions of harbors. But Sen. Paul Whalen, R-3rd (Kohala, Kona, Ka'u), said Senate Resolution 111 is necessary to allow potential developers to reconfigure docks, piers and other structures in the harbor. Whalen said a private developer is needed to provide cash for badly needed improvements that the state cannot afford.
Opponents of the legislation said Whalen is simply trying to help potential developers gain access to underwater resources in a move that would set a bad precedent.
Janet Mandrell of the Makai Society said her organization has no problem with the state privatizing services, but to give up control of submerged structures built by taxpayer money is wrong.
"If the legislators simply sign over the public lands to an agency to lease an entire facility to a single entity, it appears that the legislators are abdicating their responsibility as trustee of our natural resources, in violation of the Public Trust Doctrine," Mandrell said.
Mandrell said it would be tantamount to giving up authority over a public beach for the purpose of allowing someone to operate a concession stand.
Hawai'i's Thousand Friends submitted written testimony stating: "We do not support transferring public lands to a body that acts out-of-sight of the public. After board approval of the initial lease, there is no public oversight or appeals process."
Whalen said a private entity would still need to go through standard state and county land use approval processes for any development it might seek. He added that he would seek language requiring that any operators would need to keep boat slip fees no more than at state-run harbors.
DLNR Deputy Director Dan Davidson testified in favor of giving the agency "flexibility in development options" for the agency. Inquiries have been made about privatizing Honokohau, he said. But the Land Board and the department have been focused on development of lands near Honokohau and have not made a decision on the harbor itself, he said.
Reach Gordon Y.K. Pang at gpang@honoluluadvertiser.com or at 525-8070.
