In terms of acreage, the three parcels under review by the Hawaii Community Development Authority might seem of little consequence, but they are essential to realizing the optimal vision for the Kewalo harbor zone. And that goal should be helping to complete the “lei of green” often described as the unobstructed string of parks and landscaped walkways linking Waikiki with Kakaako Waterfront Park.
If Kewalo Basin small boat harbor is to supply a piece in that puzzle, its management should mandate a low-density, park-like treatment of its surrounding land, with facilities designed to support boating activities and public enjoyment of the area.
Of the two proposals currently in the hopper, the more minimalist approach by Howard Hughes Corp., comes closest to fulfilling what’s needed for the preferred outcome, from the public’s point of view.
The HCDA board asked both Howard Hughes, which owns the Ward Village properties on the mauka side of Ala Moana Boulevard, and its competitor in the harbor redevelopment, Kewalo Waterfront Partners, to scale down earlier versions of their proposals.
And the Howard Hughes revision, the more drastic downsizing of the two, would best allow the harbor to maintain a low-density recreational orientation.
The board deferred its decision on Wednesday and adjourned to an executive session. That session already had been scheduled for discussion of this issue, but an additional wrinkle popped up: uncertainty over whether one of the three parcels, the one closest to the ocean, would remain part of the deal.
Lindsey Doi, HCDA community outreach officer, said the decisionmaking has been tentatively set for Dec. 2; the final shape of the property up for redevelopment will be announced when the agenda is set in about two weeks, Doi added.
HCDA could pick either or neither of the two plans, but the right track would be one that preserves the most public access to the harbor complex, one of the last pieces of waterfront property up for redevelopment in Honolulu.
Further, this is publicly owned land, which compounds the responsibility HCDA has to keep public needs, rather than private profit-making interests, paramount. The authority needs to rehabilitate the area, now including a largely vacant warehouse on 1.3 acres next to Kewalo Basin Park — the parcel now being questioned. The project area also encompasses a parcel with a vacant 3,000-square-foot building and a 2.1-acre lot on the Diamond Head side of the harbor.
That 2.1-acre piece — now containing a parking lot, grassy areas and a bathroom — is where Kewalo Waterfront Partners proposes to develop a three-story complex with a 250-stall parking garage and 72,000 square feet of commercial space for retail, restaurants, a live music venue, farmers market and a multipurpose space available for rent for weddings and other private uses.
Company spokesmen told the board the company would landscape the two other parcels as green space. Still, the problem is the location of the development would more plainly interrupt the continuity of park space between Ala Moana and Kewalo.
And although the multipurpose space could have local bookings as well, the fact that the development is backed by a Japan-based wedding operator suggests that principal usage would entail the comings and goings of visitor-industry weddings — not the ideal way to keep a public property in public use.
The Hughes Corp. plan would create a convenience store with outdoor seating in and around the existing building on the smallest parcel, largely to serve the boating concessions. The largest site would be refreshed as a park for picnics and barbecues, and the warehouse sitting on the 1.3-acre lot would become an event space with surfboard lockers.
Hughes already has a lease with the state to maintain Kewalo harbor’s slips and docks under a 35-year term; should it receive HCDA’s nod for the three land lots, Hughes’ executives acknowledged, it may seek more intensive development in the future.
That is something HCDA, or whatever state agency is overseeing things three decades from now, should continue to resist. A low-rise and relaxed buildout would serve Honolulu well, ensuring that the “lei of green” adorns the waterfront, not only for the present, but in perpetuity.
