Hawaii beachgoers are unaccustomed to being barred from beaches, which are deemed public by law and long tradition.

The impulse to head for the shoreline can cause conflict at private property lines, and many communities have dedicated public access lanes, either by design when the first blueprints are drawn or by necessity, to settle those conflicts.

A problem of this kind has been festering for a generation at Portlock — at a lane connecting to the beach on the 300 block of Portlock Road, specifically — and it’s time for the city to ensure that access is in place by legal means.

A locked gate, with a sign issuing a “No Trespassing — Private Lane” warning, is newly installed at a property there. Surfers wanting to reach a popular surf break called Seconds, as well as residents of the area, found it there earlier this month and have raised a protest.

This wasn’t the first time public and private interests have clashed over this particular site. Some two decades ago, when a homeowner blocked the lane with another gate, the city started condemnation procedures to secure the public right-of-way to the beach. But that process stalled, the gate came down, and the beachgoers kept on coming through.

Neighbors said the access way actually has been in use for more than 50 years. So it would be in the best interest of the beachgoers — and ultimately for the adjacent homeowners themselves — to complete the condemnation and acquire the lane for the public.

That public should raise the profile of the issue through the Hawaii Kai Neighborhood Board, which is an advisory pipeline to city officials. The issue is on the agenda for the board’s 7 p.m. meeting May 30 at Hahaione Elementary School.

And the board members need to relay the community sentiment to the City Council and Mayor Kirk Caldwell to get the ball rolling again.

“We need to complete the work for the community so there’s no question. Our community’s rights to access the ocean shouldn’t be dictated by private landowners,” said Ann Marie Kirk, a Maunalua resident.

The lane is owned by the trust of Bert Dohmen-Ramirez, who had set off the original dispute after he installed the first gate.

Neighbors said the Dohmen-Ramirez household moved back into the Portlock home a few months ago, adding that security concerns were the reason for the new gate. A poster on the gate included a photo of litter left in the area and a broken gate to illustrate the problems at the site.

This is a reasonable concern. A proper public pathway should be suitably separated from adjacent private properties to ensure the security of the neighbors. If the hope was to turn back surfers, the gate probably was counterproductive.

People determined enough to use the lane, which leads to one of the rare sandy spots on that shoreline, are not going to be deterred by a gate. There will be less disturbance to private property once the beach pathways are clearly defined. Lanikai and other coastal communities dealing with the issue have their access points plainly signed.

These issues have arisen in coastal developments from Ewa Beach to Ko Olina and around to the North Shore, and they will continue to resurface. The islands’ public beach-access protections date back to the kingdom era. Upon Hawaii’s annexation, laws were passed to require coastal land bordering the high-water mark to be open to the general public.

A Hawaii Supreme Court decision 50 years ago upheld the principle that beach access is a right. That’s one of the cultural values that set this state apart, and it should be defended.

That defense sometimes requires an investment — land acquisition through eminent domain. The payoff in this case is that a place people have enjoyed for a half-century will remain within public reach.