Save Manoa Valley is not opposed to Hawaiian traditions of hula, oli, mele and mo‘olelo.

There is a rightful place and time for them — but not at Paradise Park, on conservation land in the back of Manoa Valley.

Evoking culture to obscure the quest for profit motives is a deflection.

If approved, the planned Paradise Park Hawaiian- themed commercial development involving a museum, vendors, entertain- ing luaus, and amphitheater will bring an additional 430,000 annual visitors to the back of the valley.

There would be 24 tour buses a day to and from the park and many more private buses, foot traffic, cars and arrivals by public transportation.

The project would significantly intensify the activities on site beyond its originally approved botanical and zoological uses.

Anyone who lives in Manoa realizes the narrow road to Paradise Park is substandard and that the aging infrastructure cannot handle the implosion of 200,000 Manoa Falls trail hikers, 35,000 visitors to the Lyon Arboretum and the explosion of visitors into Paradise Park.

We are all concerned about the pollution and runoff into Manoa stream.

The adjacent neighbors anxiously await the night and day noise.

Firefighters and EMTs worry about reaching stranded or injured hikers with the increasingly crowded narrow winding roadway.

Paradise Park had closed its commercial operations for the past 30 years. There has not been an open publicized hearing on Paradise Park. Since the applicant was first granted a permit in 1966 to open a botanical garden, the operation has never been subject to an environmental review. In fact, just this year, when requesting a permit extension, Paradise Park again tried to avoid environmental review by applying for an exemption.

In its failed attempt for a commercial use in 1995, the state Department of Land and Natural Resources stated, “Paradise Park is a for-profit venture established at the risk of the applicant in 1966. Like all business, Paradise Park experienced its ups and downs until it finally closed its tourist attraction in 1993. … The applicant acknowledges that the Paradise Park venture was at its own initiative and risk. Since the Park has closed, however, the applicant is now seeking an appropriate replacement for “economic reasons.”

Recently the park has started entertainment shows at its restaurant twice a week and adverse impacts have already been reported. We support Councilwoman Ann Kobayashi’s inquiry to DLNR on how a restaurant is allowed to operate on conservation land now that the primary use has ceased its operation for 30 years.

A recent commentary on the vision for Paradise Park contained many misrepresentations and totally ignored the adverse impacts to our precious Manoa Valley (“Vision for Paradise Park deserves public support,” Island Voices, Aug. 31). We question whether the author was aware of the overwhelming community opposition to Paradise Park’s proposal.

An environmentally sensitive area requires an environmentally sensitive approach. Save Manoa Valley’s goal is to preserve the physical environment as well as the Hawaiian traditions associated with the rich history of Manoa Valley for now and future generations.

We do so by honoring and protecting the limited amount of state designated conservation lands so we can enjoy its natural beauty, be enriched by its place in time and tradition in our history.

It is clear to the 1,600 residents who signed a petition in 2014 that a large for-profit commercial development in the back of one of Hawaii’s oldest pristine valleys should not be allowed.

Jeremy Lam submitted this on behalf of Save Manoa Valley, a nonprofit community group working to protect and preserve the valley.