Panel to weigh surf contest permit rules

By Will Hoover
Advertiser North Shore Writer

Nearly a year after city officials undertook a revamping of the rules governing surfing contests on the North Shore, the process is entering a new phase.

On Thursday, the city will convene a blue-ribbon panel that will consider amending the rules based on recommendations that emerged from a series of public meetings. The panel's findings will provide the basis for a formal report to Mayor Jeremy Harris.

The panel will be made up of representatives from the various factions involved in all forms of surfing — from body boarders to professional surfers, said Manuel Menendez, executive director of the city's Office of Economic Development. "We want everybody at the table representing their respective organizations," he said.

The process of revamping the rules came as a result of conflicts between recreational and competitive surfers over the number of surf contests taking place in the world-famous big-wave mecca.

The situation came to a head last year after a recreational faction, the Let's Surf Coalition, threatened to sue the city for violating its own rules established in 1991 that limited the number of contests that could take place on the North Shore.

Menendez says part of the panel's challenge now is in "refining and better defining some of the 1991 rules so that they are applicable to our current date situation."

Gil Riviere, who heads the Let's Surf Coalition, agrees that the 1991 rules could use some fine-tuning.

"Basically, the position of the coalition is that generally the 1991 rules work," he said. "But there are weaknesses — such as what is a 'day'?"

Riviere said the 1991 rules are vague about the subject. He said by breaking down a "day" granted by a permit for an event into a total of eight hours, some promoters have stretched contests over two days.

"They'll say, 'We only used four hours for that event, so we've got four hours left' — which they do another day. That's just an example of how sloppy things have become."

Menendez got involved a year ago after the city said it would move the event permitting process from the Parks and Recreation Department to the Office of Economic Development. Menendez has characterized his role in the process as a facilitator to assist the community in resolving its own concerns.

Riviere, who has been selected as one of the blue-ribbon panel members, said he is cautiously optimistic.

"We'll see," Riviere said. "My take is that we should have done this exactly one year ago when Manny came on board."

Instead, Menendez chaired a number of often contentious meetings among members of the various surfing factions. At one such meeting in May, Menendez declared the city would stick with its 1991 rules.

For now, Riviere said he intends to give the process the benefit of the doubt.

"Call me naive, but I'm optimistic that at least now it appears that we're where we should be and that something will get done," he said.

Reach Will Hoover at 525-8038 or whoover@honoluluadvertiser.com.