Lydgate Park bridge project needs people

WAILUA – Memo to an island known for its spirit of giving, sharing, welcoming and volunteering: The Kauaians and others planning the future of Lydgate Park need help – again.

The committee planning a “community build” of a huge pedestrian bridge near the Wailua Golf Course end of the park in late October needs 6,000 volunteers for a project that, if it were contracted out to a private company, would run into the millions of dollars in labor costs alone, according to the man who designed Kamalani Playground.

“This may, when it’s done, be the most beautiful bridge in the world,” said Bob Leathers, the architect of the playground and, after much input from the young and young at heart of Kaua’i, the pedestrian/wheelchair/bicycle bridge likely to become the centerpiece of 2.5 miles of non-vehicular trails meandering around and through the park.

“We really do need 6,000 people to get it done. All of you have to tell the entire community that they’re needed,” said Leathers, a veteran of over 1,000 community-build projects all over the country. “Without them, we’ve got nothing.”

When the bridge “is there because of the love of this island,” it will be an experience for residents to bring visitors to the park and say, “‘Let me show you the bridge we built,'” Leathers said.

The bridge, which will rise from around sea level to 40 feet above it, will be 150 feet long. Spanning between two sand dunes, it will include slides, tunnels, towers and more, as proposed by children of Kaua’i.

It was the kids who decided that the pillars holding up the bridge should look like trees, and not like tons of concrete.

The three components of the bridge embrace the three most prominent physical features of the area: Mountains, vegetation and ocean life, Leathers said.

He readily admits that his vision for the bridge likely would be much different from the community’s vision.

During the construction phase, no trees will be removed, and the grades of the sand dunes won’t be altered except to restore sand in some areas where illegal taking and recreational vehicle racing have eroded the dunes, he explained.

The bridge and plans for the park, including three full-size soccer fields, camping areas, parking, comfort stations, shoreline access for fishermen and others, and an office for a park ranger is “our dream that we’re trying to make into reality,” said Troy Wai’ale’ale, who along with Tim Bynum is co-chairman of the massive volunteer undertaking.

“We want an interactive park, not a passive park,” said Wai’ale’ale, who is also working to ensure that traditional Hawaiian design and construction methods are used when building future pavilions.

The existing pavilions may be island-style, but they’re not necessarily Hawaiian-style, he added.

“When there’s a heart,” there’s a way, said Kaua’i County Mayor Maryanne Kusaka, who joined about a dozen volunteers at a meeting and press conference at Lydgate Park’s main pavilion to show plans for the bridge and park.

When Bynum went to Kusaka about six months ago with the park plans, Kusaka said she felt guilty that the county hadn’t gotten more involved in the planning process. Yesterday, she said she requested, and the County Council approved, $500,000 for Lydgate Park in the 2001-02 county budget.

Yesterday, federal officials formally approved of the use of volunteer hours as the county’s portion of matching funds for the federal funds for the Lihu’e Gateway project, and there will likely be federal funding coming the county’s way for the park, as well, Kusaka said.

Some $4 million in federal funds will pay for the county’s Kealia pathway project, she added.

At Lydgate, there will be limits on numbers of days people can camp, and fees for permits to camp at the park. Those fees will pay for security officers and park rangers, she continued.

Other than securing a shoreline setback variance that will require county approval, or possibly legislation that will be specific to this bridge project or the park, all the necessary permits for the project have been obtained, Bynum said.

Kusaka, Bynum said, participated in the visioning process involving the park planning and has been a “huge supporter.”

Kusaka said the project wouldn’t be where it is without Bynum’s efforts.

“It’s about our community, and what we believe,” said Bynum, who hopes to recapture the feeling of community ownership instilled when the island joined forces to build Kamalani Playground.

That project sent a message to the island’s children that they are valued and their input is important, Bynum continued.

Wai’ale’ale said the pedestrian path will be much more than a glorified sidewalk, with interpretive information about the history of the place. The park will gain more trees and shade throughout, including areas around the new soccer fields, to be located near the intersection of Leho and Nalu roads.

Other improvements include raised pedestrian crosswalks between the main pavilion and beach area, scene of many near-misses where vehicles and pedestrians intersect. New lighting and other safety features are also planned.

The park-planning process has been a five-year exercise in consensus-building, said Bynum.

He noted a small construction crew is needed for a four-day period in October, with a larger crew needed for an additional six days of bridge-building.

The Kaua’i Marriott Resort and Beach Club has pledged a crew and food for the event, and American Youth Soccer Organization (AYSO) games that week won’t be played in hope that parents and players will come down and help, Bynum added.

There are 14 committees working on various details of the project, he said.

The bridge will offer Bynum calls “unprecedented wheelchair access” and a panoramic view of the east Kaua’i coastline.

“Five bucks and four hours” remains the volunteer group’s mantra, indicative of the need to get that kind of commitment from every person on Kaua’i in order to get the job done, said Dale Rosenfeld, a volunteer committee member.

Staff Writer Paul C. Curtis can be reached at mailto:pcurtis@pulitzer.net or 245-3681 (ext. 224).