The Honolulu City Council will hear a bill Wednesday designed to amend the city’s nuisance law to prevent commercial activity on Waikiki sidewalks.
In recent years a loophole in city law has allowed Waikiki businesses to use wheeled kiosks to promote their merchandise and services rent-free on public sidewalks. Bill 6, introduced by Councilman Trevor Ozawa, would prohibit rolling kiosks on Waikiki sidewalks by removing the exceptions in public nuisance law 29-16.6 for the district. The bill is slated to be heard during the 10 a.m. City Council meeting at Honolulu Hale.
Under current law the city Department of Planning and Permitting can proceed with enforcement only if a kiosk does not have wheels and isn’t mobile. The Honolulu Police Department, the city’s other kiosk enforcement arm, doesn’t typically cite kiosks unless they are too large, unmanned, obstructing traffic or their owners are peddling.
If the bill advances, it would apply only to Waikiki. Proponents of the bill, including the Waikiki Improvement Association and the Hawaii Lodging & Tourism Association (HLTA), say it would preserve access and mobility on the region’s crowded sidewalks and address concerns about unfair competition.
“The long-standing issues with sidewalk peddling in Waikiki will continue if Bill 6 does not advance,” said Mufi Hannemann, HLTA president and CEO. “Peddling is a very unique problem for Waikiki, which is the state’s major tourism hot spot and also has many tourists and residents.”
The wheeled kiosks generally number from eight to 10 on any given day in Waikiki.
Rent for retail space now ranges from $10 to $30 per square foot on Kalakaua Avenue, which ranks as one of the nation’s top shopping streets in sales volume per square foot, said retail analyst Stephany Sofos. Landlords tend to get between $5,000 and $20,000 a month for kiosk space rented on private Waikiki property, Sofos said.
“Kalakaua Avenue businesses are paying premium rent to get high-volume pedestrian traffic. I don’t blame them for being upset about the kiosks, which pull pedestrians away from their stores,” she said. “Current exceptions in the law have created an unfair two-tiered system.”
But proponents of the current law say it’s unclear how the new bill would affect the use of Waikiki sidewalks for freedom of speech purposes. For instance, Jehovah’s Witnesses and other nonprofits also use wheeled kiosks to promote their causes. They also say the current proliferation of Waikiki businesses on wheeled kiosks is natural given the district’s severe signage restrictions, which limit advertising size and placement.
Given the restrictions, some businesses have found it difficult to reach enough customers, said James Nelson, an independent contractor for Aloha Hawaii, who advertises circle-island tours from a wheeled kiosk in front of the Waikiki Shopping Plaza. Nelson said he’s using Kalakaua Avenue sidewalks to advertise because Duke’s Lane, where sales transactions are made, is off the beaten path.
“I get positive feedback from the tourists; that’s why I come out here six to seven days a week,” Nelson said.
If the proposed bill prevails, Nelson said he would offer tours from books or clipboards and expects other wheeled-kiosk operators would do the same. However, Nelson said using a wheeled kiosk legitimizes his business and increases sales.
WHAT THE CURRENT ORDINANCE STATES
>> Sec. 29-16.3: No person shall erect, establish, place, construct, maintain, keep or operate any sidewalk-nuisance on any sidewalk, except as provided in Section 29-16.6 or as otherwise authorized by law.
>> Sec. 29-16.6 currently provides for the following exceptions, which would be removed if Bill 6 passes:
The prohibitions in this article shall not apply to the following:
(1) An object or collection of objects smaller than 42 inches in length, 25 inches in width, and 43 inches in height, provided that:
(A) The object or collection of objects is attended to by an individual at all times;
(B) The object or collection of objects, or any portion thereof, does not extend into the roadway;
(C) The object or collection of objects does not obstruct the use of 36 inches in width of the sidewalk and does not obstruct the free movement of pedestrians;
(D) The object or collection of objects does not obstruct individuals from access to or egress from legally parked vehicles;
(E) The object or collection of objects does not interfere with other lawful activities taking place on the sidewalk and its placement complies with other provisions of this chapter; and
(F) The object or collection of objects does not otherwise threaten public health and safety.
Source: Revised Ordinances of Honolulu
