For Immediate Release: October 30, 2008

DLNR TO IMPLEMENT ALA WAI PARKING PLAN ON NOVEMBER 1, 2008

HONOLULU – The Department of Land and Natural Resources (DLNR) Division of Boating and Ocean Recreation (DOBOR) will implement changes and control methods to better manage the public, permit and metered parking areas in the Ala Wai Small Boat Harbor beginning Saturday, November 1, 2008.

The first and most important change is that the Division of Boating and Ocean Recreation has selected Diamond Parking to manage the entire parking area at Ala Wai.
Approval to issue a 12-month permit to a parking vendor was given by the Board of Land and Natural Resources (BLNR) at the board’s meeting on August 8, 2008. Negotiations were concluded last week when Diamond accepted and signed the final agreement.

As the vendor, Diamond Parking will provide 24-hour surveillance, collect fees, pay for necessary infrastructure upgrades related to vehicle parking (signage and striping) and pay a flat fee percentage of gross receipts to DOBOR for deposit into the Boating Special Fund which will be used to improve harbor facilities.

Other changes that will occur at Ala Wai include closed hours for free public parking areas and towing of unauthorized vehicles.

In May 2008 the BLNR approved a public parking plan for the Ala Wai harbor and helipad area that sets aside a minimum of 300 free public parking stalls at the helipad area, along the Hilton Lagoon and in select areas along the 660/700 row. The parking plan was developed via a lengthy public consultation process involving a series of meetings in 2007 and 2008 to seek input from Ala Wai users and the general public.

Under the terms of the revocable permit, Diamond Parking will keep these areas free to the public using the shoreline area for recreational purposes only. Signs have already been posted to notify the public about the specific use of the free parking area. The signs also bear a notice about closed hours. Any vehicle parking in the restricted area between 10:30 p.m. and 4:30 a.m. of the next morning will be towed.

“A plan to manage the parking lot at Ala Wai, along with all of its issues, has been many, many years in the making,” said Laura H. Thielen, DLNR chairperson. “The department is glad that the Land Board, the public and the Boating Division were able to take this first step toward an equitable solution to meeting the public’s parking needs at Ala Wai.”
“The elements of the parking plan we are now implementing may not be the final solution, however, to all of the challenges at Ala Wai,” said Thielen. “The department will be open-minded to changes to make operations at the harbor run smoothly, more efficiently and fairly for all parties.”

In the 12 months to follow, DOBOR will be developing a Request for Proposals (RFP) for a long-term parking plan. An ad hoc committee of identified Ala Wai user groups has been formed to provide input on the RFP from the perspective of the public and harbor users.

DOBOR operates and manages 19 harbors, 15 ramps, and 2,122 moorings and berths across the state. The division works in close partnership with DLNR's Division of Conservation and Resources Enforcement (DOCARE) and the U.S. Coast Guard to make near shore waters safe.

The division is also responsible for registering all vessels in Hawai‘i which are not documented by the U.S. Coast Guard, and for regulating and permitting surf meets, canoe and yachting regattas, ocean swimming events and other ocean events with the concurrence of the U.S. Coast Guard.# # #Map of Ala Wai small boat harbor managed parking areas45 second rip and read: A new parking plan will go into effect on Saturday, November 1, for the Ala Wai small boat harbor. Diamond Parking has been selected by Dept. of Land and Natural Resources to manage the harbor parking areas. More than 300 parking stalls will be free, for ocean recreation and harbor users, mainly in the old helipad area. The helipad area will be closed at night from 10:30 p.m. to 4:30 a.m. Parking in other areas of the harbor will be by permit for harbor tenants; via pay stations within the harbor at 25 cents an hour; or metered parking along Hobron and Holomoana at 40 cents an hour. These parking stalls will be available 24 hours a day.

For more information, media may contact:
Deborah Ward
DLNR Public Information Specialist
Phone: (808) 587-0320

Return to DOBOR homepage