The state Board of Land and Natural Resources (BLNR) has rejected petitions contesting an Ala Wai Small Boat Harbor contract with Secure Parking Hawaii — but critics of Secure Parking and state oversight earned acknowledgment from BLNR chair Dawn Chang in the process.

“This group is not going to go away,” she cautioned officials from Secure Parking and the state’s Division of Boating and Ocean Recreation (DOBOR).

In November, DOBOR floated misguided plans to either eliminate all 300 current free parking stalls at the harbor — which are much-used by local paddlers, surfers and swimmers — or cut free parking down to just over 100 stalls. Instead, the state must protect, not hinder, local access.