Kai Hoshijo, Support

I’m writing in support of SB-1034 for the maintenance of public parking at the Ala Wai Small Boat Harbor. I write in support as a 25 year old surfer, voyager, avid ocean user, member of the ocean community and a native Hawaiian scientist. My experience in the ocean like many others throughout the Hawaiian Archipelago is extremely reliant on access, zoning, legislation, and community. I have spent a lot of time using this space, frequenting this space, and creating relationships within the community at the small boat harbor.

I write in support of this bill because it is a form of organized legislation representing many public stakeholder groups who recognize that removal of ocean access is important enough to voluntarily come together and enter into advocacy. This measure is aligned and congruent with Mrs. Hobron’s will and vision for the use of the boat harbor coastal lands; for ocean recreation. The access that the current and previous free parking provides for the strong ocean community, generational Hawaiian families, and the opportunity for our future keiki in Hawai ‘i is constantly threatened by private initiatives for the parking areas. It’s time that we come together to forge something that would protect the place and people.

With respect to culture, the past and current planning initiatives DOBOR has introduced for new parking rates inevitably alters the incentives to utilize facilities and space, and thus, the demographic of users. It has been shown in other places that increase in monetary demands and privatizing ocean areas has resulted in a loss of connection for many ocean users, especially native people’s (Hack, 2021) (Justine-Domingue, 2022)(Burell, 2022). The legislation here not only protects public ocean access but ethics and culture where racially-biased planning can find its way into management plans and proposals.