Solving Natatorium issue could be governor’s legacy

Sports news: Two University of Hawaii sand volleyball teams are going to the nationals in Gulf Shores, Ala.

As anyone living in Hawaii knows, we love volleyball, love to play it, love to watch it. Give us a national-caliber opponent or a championship team and Hawaii puts 10,000 in the Stan Sheriff Center.

We grow and foster Olympic volleyball players. Digs, kills, slams — we just love the sport.

Our fanatic interest and support for volleyball is part of the reason Gov. Neil Abercrombie is quietly embarking on one of his most daring plans.

According to a number of sources, Abercrombie is considering rescinding an old executive order to essentially take back the Waikiki Natatorium property.

Both government and private sources say Abercrombie is considering redoing the pool, perhaps replacing it with a sand volleyball court. The area is actually large enough for two courts.

The momentum behind the state takeover was provided by UH’s decision to sponsor a women’s sand volleyball team and bring national competition to Hawaii.

The Natatorium would be a spectacular venue for future games and national championships.

You don’t have to be in the Hawaii Tourism Authority promo department to see the absolute draw of holding the national championships for all sand volleyball teams live from Waikiki beach and the Natatorium. Hold the finals at sunset, while it is prime time on the mainland. Diamond Head is sparkling with sunset hues; the Pacific is a warm blue; the stands are packed and so are the hotels.

Legislators say that Abercrombie brought up the idea in private meetings at the beginning of this legislative session. Although no money was specifically put in the budget to redo the facility, there was some interest among lawmakers to include funding next year.

The governor’s office says: "Any movement would require us to talk to the city and that hasn’t occurred yet. There’s nothing official."

So far, the Legislature has not been interested in the Natatorium issue. Actually it was the 1921 Territorial Legislature that appropriated $250,000 to build a 100-yard saltwater pool as the Waikiki Natatorium War Memorial, in honor of those from Hawaii who had served in World War I. It is owned by the state but operated by the city under an executive order.

By 1979, the pool had been so neglected and become such a menace to public safety that it was closed. Plans to restore or replace the pool came and went with various city administrations. In 2009, a city task force voted 9 to 3 to demolish the Natatorium and construct a memorial beach. The city ordered an environmental impact statement that would explore both tearing it down and or reconstructing the memorial. City officials say that report is expected to be finished by the end of this year.

If Abercrombie, who has been a strong supporter of the memorial, jumped into the fray, he would be doing both the city administration and the City Council a major favor. If Abercrombie became the point of conflict for the endless debates on the Natatorium, then the city would have one less controversy to deal with.

Fully restoring the memorial is likely to cost upwards of $15 million or more because it was estimated to cost almost $12 million back in 1998. No one has priced out the sand court option, although those familiar with the issue say it is more complicated than just dumping sand into the swimming pool.

The construction would not be as complicated as weaving the process through the Legislature. Finding the money for sand is not high on anyone’s priority list.

Still, if Abercrombie were actually able to bring closure to the controversy, provide the university team with a world-class venue, make ESPN forget the Pro Bowl, and ignite new tourist interest in Hawaii, it would go a long way toward remaking his own political image.

———

Richard Borreca writes on politics on Sundays, Tuesdays and Fridays. Reach him at rborreca@staradvertiser.com.