User fees proposed for Waipi'o Soccer Complex
By Johnny Brannon
Advertiser Staff Writer
Soccer teams from around the nation have flocked to tournaments at Honolulu's $24 million Waipi'o Soccer Complex since it opened in 2000. They've also played there for free, something no comparable venue allows.
Now, amid growing concern about the cost of maintaining the soccer fields and another new park that features tennis, city officials hope to defray expenses by transferring those duties to private groups.
The operators, or the city, would be allowed to charge fees to sports teams and other groups that use the facilities on an organized basis. Casual public use would still be free.
The city tried to hire a private operator for the soccer park before it opened, and several groups were interested. But each wanted the city to subsidize operations or bail them out if they didn't make enough money to cover expenses.
There was another serious issue: The city had never established a legal framework that would allow anyone to charge user fees.
Such a plan is being debated by the City Council, and a public hearing is set for 2 p.m. Wednesday at Honolulu Hale.
Several council members say they are staunchly opposed.
"It sets a very bad precedent for the future if the city feels it can charge user fees for parks," Councilman Charles Djou said. "I don't want this to be a back-door tax increase."
But Deputy City Managing Director Malcolm Tom said the plan has always been to allow a private operator to charge fees at the soccer park.
The city administration intended to ask the council to establish a fee structure when the park opened, but the plan was shelved because no privatization deal was finalized, Tom said.
The city spends more than $550,000 per year to operate and maintain the 300-acre complex, which features 19 soccer fields and a lighted stadium.
The new $65 million Central O'ahu Regional Park, which includes a 20-court tennis complex and 269 acres of landscaped grounds, is expected to cost more than $723,000 a year to run.
The city is facing a budget deficit of more than $100 million, and Mayor Jeremy Harris says he will propose a property tax hike to help bridge the gap.
The administration wants to charge fees at the soccer park, the tennis complex, and the Hans L'Orange Park baseball field to further reduce the deficit.
"The goal is to have the fees pay for as much of the maintenance as possible," Tom said. "Whatever fees we can generate reduces the burden to the taxpayers."
A major sticking point in the original fee plan was whether private operators would have to stick to a city-approved rate schedule, or whether they would be free to negotiate charges.
"That's a big debate," Tom said. "They wanted the ability to charge fees, but didn't want to be locked into a set fee structure."
Djou said that's also a big hole in the legislation, which doesn't say how much the charges would be.
"It's very open-ended, and it's left entirely to the discretion of the parks director," he said.
Djou stressed that he did not believe anyone intended to abuse the fee system, but that a loosely structured ordinance could open the door to problems years later.
Sergio Bolioli, president of the Men's Island Soccer Organization, said the issue of fees had been discussed since the soccer park project began.
Most players seem open to "reasonable" charges if that will ensure the fields are well-maintained, Bolioli said.
But it's important that the goal not be simply to make money, said Bolioli, who was part of a group of Hawai'i soccer enthusiasts who proposed in 2000 to operate the park.
"We were trying to come up with the lowest fees possible so they wouldn't scare people away," he said. "You want this beautiful park to be used. The main concern we have is that it's not just a financial thing, but that they work with the soccer community."
Overall, the soccer park has been a huge success, he said, and the dozens of tournaments that have been held there have boosted enthusiasm for the sport.
"It has made people want to play soccer, to be active again," Bolioli said. "Whenever you talk about user fees, there's always going to be some resistance, just like when a politician wants to raise taxes. It's the same thing."
Djou said he believes the parks are great community assets but that officials failed to properly plan for their continued operation. He noted that the Central O'ahu park was plagued by change orders and cost overruns.
"I think the Harris administration really oversold these projects to the council, and the city now is really stuck," he said. "We bit off more than we can chew. We built these facilities with no real thought as to how we would maintain them. I think there were unrealistic assessments as to how these projects would pan out."
If fees are allowed, Tom said, a portion of the soccer and tennis facilities would always be available for free public use, except when all courts or fields are needed to host a major tournament.
If a fee system is approved, events that already have been scheduled would be evaluated on a case-by-case basis to determine if they should still be free, he said.
Manny Menendez, director of the city's Economic Development Office, said private firms should be far more eager now to assume the risk of operating the soccer park. The complex has a solid track record of attracting tournaments, and the fee plan would provide a revenue stream, he said.
"The facility is a success because it is a superior facility, not because it's free," Menendez said. "People are coming because it's a superior facility with the added bonus that it's in Hawai'i. I'm very, very confident, because it's proven itself already. Anyone looking at the numbers can see it's working."
Another idea is to open part of the complex up for concerts, car shows, antique fairs and flea markets, with the city collecting a portion of the money that's made, he said.
Reach Johnny Brannon at jbrannon@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8070.
