It often seems that any big project in Hawai'i eventually becomes a political battle:

H-3 Freeway? Kapolei Second City? Tearing down the old Alexander Young Hotel for a new office building and park? Housing at Sandy Beach or Waiahole Valley?

You get the picture.

The latest such struggle is slowly but surely emerging at the edge of Honolulu, in Kaka'ako, where the state has ambitious plans to develop 36 1/2 acres ewa of Ala Moana Beach Park.

There is a bit of irony here. The battleground is hardly the most glamorous piece of land in the state. It is a former dump, used mostly for tired industrial operations.

But it is on the ocean. And that's what fuels the latest in the countless land struggles that have dominated the news over the years. It's complicated because — as in previous such controversies — there are elements of emotion and big guy vs. little guy to the matter that tend to trump sober land-use planning.

After years of dithering, the Hawai'i Community Development Authority has come up with what it says is its last and best idea for the site: a "live, work and play urban village" that would include shops, restaurants, public spaces and high-rise apartments.

The authority has tentatively selected Alexander & Baldwin to develop the site with an aligned vision.

It appears that the apartments are the spark point for opposition. Opponents sketch dire scenarios of a wall of high-rises, mostly occupied by the affluent, that would wall off the remainder of the area from the public.

Yes, opponents say, there will be parking, public access and public facilities. But surrounded by pricey condos and trendy shops, they will not feel welcome.

The authority makes a strong case that the apartments are critical because, without them, there simply won't be enough money to develop envisioned public facilities, including a performance amphitheater.

Proposals to convert the entire area into a public park are unrealistic, they argue. The state hardly has the money to maintain the parks it now owns, they say, citing the huge but sadly under-maintained Sand Island Park as an example.

So the battle lines are drawn, and it will take determined political leadership by the Lingle administration and by state lawmakers to sort this out. In the case of Waiahole, the matter was resolved through state purchase of the entire valley. At Sandy Beach, it took a massive grass-roots campaign to stop residential development across from the famous body-surfing site.

The lesson here is that the plan that "pencils out" best on paper may not be the best idea from a political and community standpoint. It is best to resolve these tensions now rather than go forward into years of political and community dispute that will only add more years to the neglect of what should be a crown jewel for Honolulu.

Jerry Burris is The Advertiser's editorial page editor.

Reach Jerry Burris at jburris@honoluluadvertiser.com.