There's a spot of beauty in urban Honolulu that, thankfully, we'll get to keep.

It's one of the city's treasured but troubled "water features" — the idyllic little fountain at Chinatown Gateway Park that was constantly breaking down. City officials had contemplated removing the fountain because repairs appeared to be problematic and very expensive. Fortunately, they've taken a closer look.

Work is beginning to remove adjacent banyan trees that were complicating repairs. The redesign will enable a more maintenance-friendly fountain installation than the initial plan to restore the current configuration. Better still, it'll all happen at a fraction of the original estimated cost: $40,000 versus $500,000.

However, this will not solve the fountain's other problem: its tendency to be treated as a trash receptacle. That's where community cooperation comes into play. It's a perfect candidate for the city's "adopt a park" program, a project for Chinatown businesses or organizations.

Neighbors wanted to keep the fountain, and now it appears that they will. Now it will be their responsibility to keep it up as a community asset.