The days may be numbered for Oahu’s popular yet illegal “Stairway to Heaven” hike.

A city agency that owns most of the property containing the Haiku Stairs is proposing to remove the 3,922-step metal staircase after decades of trouble with unauthorized access and costs involving the Windward Oahu hike, which attracts an estimated nearly 4,000 people a year.

The Honolulu Board of Water Supply is willing to spend about $1 million to yank out the staircase running up the side of the Koolau Mountains in Kaneohe, and estimates that it could start the work late next year and finish in mid-2022.

However, the semi-autonomous agency also said it remains open to transferring ownership of the property to a public or private entity if access and other issues can be overcome.

Mayor Kirk Caldwell said in a statement that he’d like the city Department of Parks and Recreation to take possession of the stairs and look at potential private proposals to manage access.

“I have always wanted to preserve Haiku Stairs, but it’s important to provide relief to the community around the entrance to the facility, and to ensure the experience is made safer for hikers and first responders,” Caldwell said in the statement.

Community organization Friends of Haiku Stairs also wants the staircase kept for public use with managed legal access.

BWS, which said it spends $250,000 a year trying to deter trespassers from climbing the stairs and has received no commitments for a land transfer, laid out its preferred removal plan in a draft environmental impact statement published Sunday by the state Office of Environmental Quality Control following more than two years of discussions with government agencies, community organizations, area residents and others.

“The BWS’s mission is to provide Oahu residents with a safe, dependable, and affordable water supply,” Ernest Lau, the agency’s manager and chief engineer, said in a statement. “Managing Haiku Stairs draws BWS staff, financial, and other resources away from our core mission to efficiently and effectively meet the water demand of our customers.”

The agency also cited safety and potential liability concerns, noting in the report that the lower half of the staircase is in poor condition due to corrosion and lack of maintenance.

“The BWS objective is to eliminate its liability as continued management and operation of Haiku Stairs is not consistent with its mission,” it said in the report.

If the agency carries out its plan, it would eliminate a climbing route to a spectacular scenic view — and a cause of injuries, rescues and nearby residents’ frustrations.

Haiku Stairs history

Haiku Stairs was initially a wooden ladder built by the Navy during World War II up the south side of Haiku Valley to access radio transmission equipment along Puu Keahiakahoe ridge 2,820 feet above sea level.

The Navy replaced the wooden structure with galvanized steel stairs and railings in the 1950s, and in 1975 turned over use to the Coast Guard. The Coast Guard, which operated its Omega navigation station in the valley, allowed public use of the stairs and required visitors to log in and sign a liability waiver. However, after portions of the staircase were destroyed by vandals, the Coast Guard cut off public use in 1987.

In 1997 the Coast Guard decommissioned its Haiku facilities and was prepared to remove the stairs. However, city and state officials expressed interest to take over the stairs as a public resource.

BWS, which owns most of the land surrounding the staircase, sought at that time to transfer its land to the city after determining it didn’t need the property for future water source development.

In 2002 upon an anticipated transfer, the city spent $875,000 refurbishing the staircase. But challenges over creating a legal public thoroughfare to the bottom of the stairs, something that was complicated by the 1997 opening of the H-3 freeway, derailed a property transfer.

As a result, the hike remained an illegal adventure with much allure for the challenge and panoramic views of Windward Oahu.

With no legal access, hikers have cut across private property and jammed a nearby residential neighborhood with cars. Area residents also complain about disrespectful acts by hikers, including using garden hoses, leaving trash and waking up residents between 2 and 4 a.m. as they set off to reach the summit in time to see the sunrise, the BWS report said.

In part because of social media, the number of annual climbers on the stairs surged from about 2,500 in 2015 to 5,150 in 2017, according to BWS, which also said in the report that during this period there where three months when the number of hikers topped 2,000.

Enforcement efforts

BWS said it has tried to stop use of Haiku Stairs by hiring a full-time security guard near the base of the stairs in 2014 and a special-duty police officer with power to cite trespassers in 2017 at what now totals an annual cost around $250,000.

Enforcement efforts that subject trespassers to arrest, fines up to $1,000, community service and even jail have deterred many, though 300 to 500 people a month were still sneaking onto the hike last year, in part because social media posts promote the adventure with photos, videos and even maps for unpermitted access, BWS said in the report.

Last week the Live in Hawaii page on Facebook, which describes itself as being dedicated to exploring the state’s beauty and making the aloha spirit come alive, posted a video snippet showing the view from atop Haiku Stairs. The post attracted 166 comments including “My favorite hike on Oahu” along with “One day I will see this in person” and “We are doing this!!!!!!!!”

BWS proposes to remove some or all of 593 stair and railing modules, each weighing about 500 pounds, using a helicopter.

Total removal is estimated to cost $895,781. A deteriorated smaller staircase on a Moanalua Valley trail is also proposed for removal at a cost of $90,485.

These costs factor in proceeds from recycling the steel structures.

BWS also said a less expensive option could be to remove just the first 1,000 feet of Haiku Stairs.

The public is invited to weigh in on the proposal through the environmental review process. The draft EIS is available at health.hawaii.gov/oeqc. Comments are due Aug. 7.