HONOLULU — Three years ago, Governor Ben Cayetano sang the praises of having a single port authority to run the state’s harbors and oversee development of Hawaii’s blossoming $2.5 billion maritime industry. “Our goal is to create a more efficient,
HONOLULU — Three years ago, Governor Ben Cayetano sang the praises of having a single port authority to run the state’s harbors and oversee development of Hawaii’s blossoming $2.5 billion maritime industry.
“Our goal is to create a more efficient, one-stop maritime agency, which will be a great improvement over the existing system,” Cayetano said at the time.
But last Thursday, administration officials went before the state Senate Transportation Committee to oppose a single maritime authority as proposed by Sen. Bobby Bunda (D-22nd District) in his opening-day address as Senate president.
The conflict has implications for Kaua’i, where cruise ship calls are increasing at Nawiliwili and Cayetano has called for a major berthing expansion.
“We’ve got to find a way we can get the facilities ready for all the influx of cruise ships, and to me,” a single port authority is “the only way we can do it,” said Transportation Committee chairman Cal Kawamoto, sponsor of a bill mirroring Bunda’s proposal.
However, Kawamoto (D-19th District) deferred action on the bill, saying its chances look bleak in the face of administration opposition.
In 1998, the Legislature approved a measure creating a temporary maritime commission to make recommendations to the 1999 Legislature for the creation of a permanent state maritime authority.
Despite his initial enthusiasm, Cayetano never named members to the temporary commission.
Kawamoto, from Pearl City, said Cayetano felt the panel would be balanced too far toward the interests of the maritime industry and not enough toward the state’s needs.
Nevertheless, acting transportation director Brian Minaai told the committee last Thursday that the 11-member port authority proposed in the Senate bill was weak in representing maritime interests.
“Tell us what you want,” said a frustrated Kawamoto.
Cayetano could not be reached for comment.
The state Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism said it has supported the goal of resolving waterfront-use conflicts. But instead of a single port authority to oversee all waterfront operations and development, it recommended a smaller step: Consolidating the agencies overseeing the development of the closed Barbers Point Naval Air Station properties and Aloha Tower into the Hawai’i Community Development Authority, which oversees the development of the Kaka’ako district.
That consolidation would be “a step toward rationalizing multiple authority over the waterfront,” department officials said in a statement.
The state Department of Land and Natural Resources said the Senate bill is essentially the same as the 1998 law and would duplicate that effort, even though apparently little came of it.
Matson Navigation Co., whose operations include a terminal at Nawiliwili on Kaua’i, said it supported the general idea of a single port authority but opposes the current bill because it would give the authority, and not the Legislature, the power to define the panel’s purpose and functions.
The only support for the measure came from Bruce Middleton, a boater.
“Our present fragmented system of port and harbor administration results in costly interagency duplication of effort,” he said. “The present rundown condition of all too many of our small boat harbors throughout the state bears eloquent testimony to the extent of these problems.”
However, he hopes to move another bill transferring the small boat harbors from DLNR back to the Department of Transportation.
The state’s maritime activities are split between DOT’s Harbors Division, DLNR, the Hawai’i Community Development Authority and the Aloha Tower Development Corp.
Facing the Harbors Division is the need to plan terminals and berthing for American Hawai’i Cruises’ new pair of super-sized interisland cruise ships expected for delivery in 2003 and 2004, and for the growing number of visiting international cruise ships.
Last month, American Hawaii Cruises added the 1,212-passenger ms Patriot to its Hawai’i operations. Next December, Norwegian Cruise Line wants to base its 1,960-passenger luxury ship SuperStar Leo in Honolulu for interisland cruises that would include a leg down to Fanning Island.
Associated Press writer Bruce Dunford contributed to this report.
