City rep promises Ha'iku solutions
By Eloise Aguiar
Advertiser Windward O'ahu Writer
KANE'OHE — Residents considered it something of a victory when City Managing Director Ben Lee showed up to talk about their concerns regarding illegal hiking at Ha'iku Stairs. And then it got even better.
Lee assured them the stairs would not open until parking and facilities for hikers were in place. He said the number of hikers would be limited, and no tour buses or vans would be allowed.
Once parking is provided, if trespassing persists, he said he would hire police to monitor illegal access to the stairs around the clock, until hikers understand they cannot trespass through neighboring property.
"We have to solve your problem," he told them.
The assurances came as a comfort to residents who have had to contend for more than a year with hundreds of illegal hikers trying to get to the closed trail. It helped that they came from Lee, who has the authority to get things done.
Before Thursday's Kane'ohe Neighborhood Board meeting ended, Lee had agreed to meet with the community to develop a strategy to handle all the concerns.
"I think it's about time," said Rae Leong, who has seen illegal hikers in her neighborhood since the stairs were repaired last summer. "This is the first time Ben (Lee) has come to a meeting. So the hope is they begin to meet with us and hear our concerns."
"I like the way (this meeting) was left," said Friends of Ha'iku Stairs board president John Goody. "We're going to get together and solve the problem."
Concerns raised at the meeting showed a community still divided about when to open the stairs and the need for planning in a valley that has Hawaiian historical sites, a hazardous dump and dilapidated buildings.
Lee was at the meeting to explain the city's plans for parking and access for the Stairway to Heaven in Ha'iku Valley and hear an alternate proposal.
About 30 people attended, from residents who support opening the stairs to others who want them closed until the issue of illegal trespassing is resolved.
The city continues to negotiate with the state to acquire the former Coast Guard Omega Station in the valley for parking and other facilities for hikers, Lee said.
The city has proposed a swap of 50 acres of undeveloped agriculture land in 'Ewa for the 142 acres of preservation land in Ha'iku owned by the state Department of Hawaiian Home Lands. The city also offered to sell DHHL 57 golf course lots in Ewa Village that are ready to build on, Lee said.
But even if the city can negotiate a land swap, residents want the trespassing problem solved first, before hiking access is provided.
Resident Carleen Yokotake said a 10-foot-high fence at Loli'i Street would do the trick. "We want you to block trespassing points first, then give access," she said.
Board of Water Supply representative Barry Usagawa, who lives in Ha'iku, said he would ask BWS engineers to look into providing the fence on Loli'i, but noted there are other illegal access points.
One resident called for removing sections of the stairs to prevent illegal hiking until the city and community have time to develop comprehensive plans for the area.
The city spent $875,000 to repair the Ha'iku Stairs, but the popular climb of 3,922 steps to the 2,800-foot summit remains closed, and security guards turn away hikers.
Initially, liability issues kept the stairs from opening last summer, but hundreds of hikers trespassed through neighboring properties anyway, delaying the reopening and prompting some residents to call for a permanent closure.
Neighbors said hikers would arrive before sunrise, waking dogs, and that they left litter, argued with residents and cluttered streets with their cars, interfering with mail delivery and garbage collection.
Although they began complaining soon after repair work was completed, it wasn't until June that the city stationed police at the stairs to warn or cite trespassers.
An early attempt to obtain parking and access through Hope Chapel Kane'ohe failed.
The city-DHHL land swap could take three to six months, and would still require the city to make some improvements at the station before it could be opened, Lee said.
An alternate plan for access and parking at Windward Community College, proposed by board member Keoki Leong, was opposed by state Rep. Ken Ito, D-48th (Kane'ohe).
"I lobbied for three years to get money for the college (students). Now you tell me the hikers going use it," Ito said. "No way."
Reach Eloise Aguiar at eaguiar@honoluluadvertiser.com or 234-5266.
