LIHU‘E — On the heels of a highly visible success story at Polihale State Park, Westside volunteers are at it again, planning improvements at Kikiaola Small Boat Harbor just down the road in Kekaha rather than waiting for government bureaucracy
LIHU‘E — On the heels of a highly visible success story at Polihale State Park, Westside volunteers are at it again, planning improvements at Kikiaola Small Boat Harbor just down the road in Kekaha rather than waiting for government bureaucracy to cut through the red tape.
With the state Department of Land and Natural Resources again hamstrung due to budgeting issues, the community has decided to step up and make much-needed repairs to the wood loading dock.
State Rep. Roland Sagum, D-16th District, confirmed Wednesday that DLNR’s Division of Boating and Ocean Recreation has closed access to the dock, putting caution tape all the way around it.
“The surface of the dock was repaired several years ago, but how it is connected to the ground has failed,” Sagum said. “The community has said, ‘We don’t mind coming forward and doing the work if someone can provide the materials.’”
Ron Agor, the Westside architect who helped make the Polihale access road bridge safe for use, said DOBOR chief Ed Underwood told him Wednesday that the state would accept the volunteers’ assistance.
“As the architect on record, I will be evaluating the existing structural conditions Friday morning. I will then develop a repair plan and present it to Rep. Sagum and the community volunteers. If it’s a go, I will follow by directing the community volunteers on the repair,” Agor said in an e-mail. “I believe the work can be completed in 30 days.”
Likely joining Agor on the Friday evaluation will be Philip Fill, vice president of the Kikiaola Westside Boaters Club.
“We’re going to get in the water and see if there’s a foundation for the pipes and beams that are rotting away,” Fill said. “We’ll see if we can do a load test on the footings, if there are footings there. … We’ll see if it’s adequate for us to put in new verticals.
“It’s still kind of in the question mark mode right now, but we’re going to try to keep moving along with this,” he said.
Assuming the state is unable to come through with funding for a complete overhaul — Sagum estimated it might cost $1.5 million or more if it went through the normal bid process — the improvements might only add an extra year or two of life to the dock.
“As it stands now, the pier could be condemned and it may take a year or two to have the state repair or replace the pier,” Agor said. “I agree with the community that the length of the potential down time is unacceptable. I also appreciate the community understanding where the state stands and are willing to step up and repair the dock themselves. The Westside people are special in this way and I have full confidence in their commitment to the repair.”
While the community’s willingness to lend a hand while the state digs itself out of a major budget shortfall is an embodiment of the aloha spirit, it could also set a dangerous precedent where government both taxes its residents and expects them to perform maintenance on its decaying infrastructure.
“We are far away from that scenario. … I’d like to not think we’re relying on it (volunteerism) as a major form,” Sagum said. “That’s why the governor has the Recreational Renaissance — a way to catch up. They’ll float a bond, make improvements, and then charge the fees that you’re supposed to be charging to the users, and then pay the loans back.”
The DLNR recently announced a $240 million capital improvement plan to be implemented over the coming years. The state Legislature looks poised to pass a bill that will permit it to go forward.
The dock issues are not set to be addressed in the ongoing $25 million cooperative project between state and federal agencies that started work at the harbor last year. That project was designed to include entrance channel and inner harbor dredging, and a redesign and shoring up of the breakwater wall.
Ongoing community complaints surrounding the Army Corps of Engineers’ decision to remove a spur from the breakwater during that project will be addressed when the parties talk.
Sagum said a meeting was scheduled for the first week of May, but will likely be rescheduled. Fill said he hoped the meeting would be scheduled for after work hours so that all interested community members would be able to attend.
For more information on the Recreational Renaissance program, visit hawaii.gov/dlnr/recreate. For more information on DOBOR, visit hawaii.gov/dlnr/dbor.
For more information on the volunteer efforts, contact Agor at 651-5764 or ron@ronagor.com, or Sagum at 652-9811.
For further coverage of volunteer efforts and progress updates on government-funded work at Kikiaola Small Boat Harbor, see a future edition of The Garden Island.
