The City Council voted Wednesday to override Mayor Kirk Caldwell’s veto on a bill that would block the transfer of Thomas Square to the Department of Enterprise Services from the Department of Parks and Recreation, citing concerns that the move could commercialize much-needed green space.
Caldwell, who vetoed the bill last month Opens in a new tab, said after Wednesday’s vote that his administration “will be discussing the city’s next steps to move forward with the Thomas Square project to honor the 175th anniversary of the restoration of the Hawaiian Kingdom and celebrate the unique history of the site.”
Area Councilwoman Ann Kobayashi said she was frustrated that Caldwell vetoed Bill 23 Opens in a new tab given that the Council approved the measure unanimously last month. At Wednesday’s meeting, she grilled city Managing Director Roy Amemiya on whether the administration would transfer other parks in need of maintenance to the Enterprise Services Department and asked why more funding for the Department of Parks and Recreation could not help to improve Thomas Square.
Kobayashi said she introduced the bill in response to concerns from residents who maintained that the park could become a hub for commercial activities under the Enterprise Services Department, which manages the Neal S. Blaisdell Center, the Honolulu Zoo, the Waikiki Shell and municipal golf courses.
The Council voted 6-3 to override Caldwell’s veto, with Council members Brandon Elefante, Kymberly Pine and Joey Manahan voting no. Six votes were needed to override the veto.
“If it’s remaining as a park, why do you have to take that out of the Parks Department?” Kobayashi asked. “I just don’t understand the reason for the veto. The administration has not provided a valid rationale to transfer management of the park to the Department of Enterprise Services except to say that the Department of Enterprise Services can do a better job than Parks (department) at maintaining the park. I have great faith in the Parks Department.”
Kathy Whitmire of the Outdoor Circle agreed, adding that “it would be unacceptable to remove Thomas Square from the Honolulu parks system and convert it to an enterprise whose primary purpose is revenue generation.”
But Amemiya said the idea that the transfer would commercialize Thomas Square was misguided and that it would remain a public park. He maintained that the move would improve Thomas Square by using staff from nearby Blaisdell Center, who have the resources to better manage, maintain and secure the 6.5-acre park, considered the state’s first public park.
Caldwell’s administration has pledged that the Enterprise Services Department would add similar activities at Thomas Square that are already allowed at parks islandwide, and that many, if not all, of the same events would remain. He had maintained that the measure violates the separation of powers because under the City Charter, assigning city property to a department falls under the executive branch, not the legislative, which Caldwell said led the Department of the Corporation Counsel to not sign off on the bill.
He said in a statement Wednesday that he “is disappointed that members of the City Council ignored clear legal guidance regarding the bill’s unconstitutional violation of separation of powers.”
The transfer was part of the Caldwell administration’s plan to overhaul the historic park, which is undergoing a $1.18 million project that includes grading, installing a new irrigation system and removing the mock orange hedge. They have said other upgrades to the park include a 468-square-foot concession stand and a King Kamehameha III statue.
Council Chairman Ron Menor said he decided to place the override vote on the agenda to promote transparency if any Council members changed positions on the bill after it was vetoed. He had said last month that he did not plan to schedule a vote to override the veto because he did not “sense that there are six votes on the Council to override.”
At Wednesday’s meeting, Kobayashi and Councilman Ernie Martin argued that the Council should not be a “rubber stamp” for Caldwell’s administration, expressing frustration that the mayor vetoed a bill that has overwhelming support.
But Elefante and Pine said they remained concerned with the separation of powers issue. Pine added that “nobody controls” her.
Also on Wednesday, the Council gave preliminary approval to a bill that would expand the city’s sit-lie ban to additional parts of the Ala Moana-Sheridan area after Caldwell had vetoed a similar measure last month.
Bill 66 Opens in a new tab, introduced by Kobayashi, would extend the controversial law banning anyone from sitting or lying on certain public sidewalks to Victoria Street from Piikoi Street. The bill passed the first of three readings on Wednesday.
Caldwell had vetoed another bill Opens in a new tab, also introduced by Kobayashi, that sought to expand the sit-lie law into the same area and add all of Makahiki Way in the McCully-Moiliili area to the ordinance, citing legal concerns that Makahiki Way included a residential area. City attorneys have said that sit-lie laws can apply only to areas where homeless encampments are adversely affecting businesses. Should the Council pass a bill with the Ala Moana-Sheridan area only, Caldwell said he would sign it.
Kobayashi said she introduced Bill 66 instead of requesting a vote to override Caldwell’s veto on her previous measure due to the legal concerns.
