Posted on: Sunday, July 11, 2004

EDITORIALS
Renewed Fort St. Mall deserves its benches

Something has gone wrong in the joint public-private effort to upgrade and improve Fort Street Mall in downtown Honolulu.

As reported by Urban Honolulu writer James Gonser, mall benches uprooted and removed by the city in early 2002 have never been replaced.

The removal was supposed to be temporary, but as the months go by, it appears to be more of a permanent decision.

There's no doubt the benches attracted vagrants and the homeless, who would use them for resting and even sleeping. But they are also an important amenity for shoppers and others who use the mall regularly.

The city says the benches were removed at the request of local businesses and the nonprofit Fort Street Mall Business Improvement District. The district, a self-taxing operation, provides much of the cleaning, security and landscaping for the mall.

A spokesman for the improvement group said it never asked that the benches be removed, at least not permanently.

The solution to this seems rather straightforward: Benches that are appropriate for resting and sitting, but not for sleeping, should be reinstalled.

And merchants and others who line the mall should continue their impressive efforts to make the former street an attractive place that will lure shoppers, strollers and others.

The busier it is, the less attractive it will become for the homeless.