Battle over stairs set to escalate
By Eloise Aguiar
Advertiser Windward O'ahu Writer
KANE'OHE — A calm has settled over Ha'iku Valley, where not long ago hundreds of trespassers flocked on weekends to illegally hike the "Stairway to Heaven." But behind the peaceful facade, a battle brews.
At odds are the Friends of Ha'iku Stairs, which, along with other like-minded organizations, wants to reopen the 2,800-foot climb to the Pu'u Keahiakahoe summit, and neighbors of the popular hiking trail who want it closed permanently.
An initial groundswell of opposition from residents frustrated with trespassing, littering and other activities by illegal hikers has given way to an organized campaign to push for the permanent closure of the stairs. In recent months that movement has snowballed, with neighboring residents becoming more organized, pushing the issue at monthly neighborhood board meetings, getting one of their own appointed to the board, and gaining the support of state Rep. Ken Ito and Hawaiian Home Lands Director Micah Kane.
Now, alarmed at those and other recent developments, the Friends of Ha'iku Stairs is mounting a petition drive and asking supporters to write letters to let politicians know there is widespread support to reopen the stairs.
"Initially the board and the City Council members were hearing only from those who are upset and want the stairs gone," said John Flanigan, chairman of the Friends' board of directors. "We know there are thousands who want the stairs available to them for the recreational, historical, educational, scientific value they offer. We are confident that with adequate planning and supervision it can be done with minimal impact on the neighborhoods."
The situation sets the stage for one of the more visible public access debates in recent years, but one that history and tradition indicate is likely to result in the eventual opening of the Stairway to Heaven.
Still, neighboring residents believe they have a compelling argument, one they can use to wring concessions from a city bent on opening the attraction it spent $875,000 to renovate.
In Hawai'i, public trails are rarely closed, said Aaron Lowe, a trails and access specialist for the state Na Ala Hele program, which is dedicated to maintaining and increasing public access to open space.
When they are, it's only because of overuse or for safety reasons, Lowe said.
When Manoa Falls Trail was closed in February 2002 because of a rockslide, the state was quick to provide a risk assessment and mitigations, reopening the trail as quickly as possible because people want to go there, he said.
There is even talk of possibly reopening parts of Sacred Falls Park, which was closed after a landslide on May 10, 1999, killed eight people and injured 50 others. Discussions are under way between the state and community, and a number of groups have said they want to reopen the area.
Within days of that accident, the state also closed Ma'akua Gulch in Hau'ula, which has similar dangers. That trail remains closed.
The Ha'iku Stairs were originally built of wood in 1942 and replaced 10 years later with metal. The 3,922 steps fell into disrepair and were closed in 1987. They were repaired last year, though never officially opened because of liability concerns and problems with legal access. Hikers swarmed to the area anyway to illegally climb the stairs. In recent weeks, the city has posted guards there seven days a week, greatly reducing the number of hikers. But people still attempt to get to the stairs.
Lowe said several factors would make it very difficult to close the stairs permanently: its popularity, the amount of money spent to repair it, and the time that officials and others have put into getting it reopened.
Taxpayer money was spent to fix it, and if it was closed, taxpayer money would have to be spent to keep people away, he said.
"What do you do?" Lowe asked. "Do you destroy it? I think a lot of support for the stairs would come out of the woodwork if there was discussion of destroying it."
City Managing Director Ben Lee looked to the state constitution to bolster the city's resolve to move forward with the reopening.
"The state constitution does provide public access to mountain hiking trails as well as to the shoreline," Lee said, adding that he was confident that once parking was available, problems would move out of the surrounding neighborhoods.
But residents there don't believe the problems will go away. Hikers will continue to come to the Hokulele neighborhood because it is the easiest access to the stairs, said Rae Leong, a Hokulele resident.
"We'd like to shut it down," Leong said, adding that residents would be willing to start their own letter-writing campaign.
Residents from the Hokulele subdivision have joined forces with Castle Hills subdivision residents and people living in the vicinity of Kuneki Street, which is near the entrance to the old Coast Guard Omega station in the valley.
The Coast Guard turned over its land, 147 acres, to Hawaiian Home Lands and the city is now negotiating a land swap with Hawaiian Home Lands to obtain the valley for parking, an information center and restroom facilities.
That promises to be a drawn-out process, and Kane has said he would include surrounding residents in the process in an effort to solve their problems with illegal hikers.
Leong said the residents don't want the land swap to go through because that would only move the problem from her neighborhood to the Kuneki Street area.
Lee disagreed, saying the parks department would develop rules and regulations to limit the number of people climbing the stairs.
In the meantime, the Friends of Ha'iku Stairs has mounted a campaign to bolster support for the reopening after the City Council recently deferred action to accept lands under Ha'iku Stairs from the Board of Water Supply.
Flanigan, with the Friends, said several other meetings where residents opposed the reopening of the stairs made him realize that the point of view of thousands of supporters has not been heard.
"We need to document those thousand of supporters," he said.
Reach Eloise Aguiar at 234-5266 or eaguiar@honoluluadvertiser.com.
