Efforts to secure a small lane for public access to a beach off Portlock Road have been stalled by Mayor Kirk Caldwell’s administration, and City Councilman Trevor Ozawa, who represents the area, is questioning whether election-year politics is to blame.
Last week the Budget Committee, which Ozawa chairs, moved out Resolution 18-211, the second measure imploring the Caldwell administration to “move forward expeditiously” with condemnation proceedings to obtain a small lane from the street as an easement.
The lane had been used by surfers, fishermen and other oceangoers for years, but property owner Bert Dohmen-Ramirez installed a locked, chain-link gate to block access.
The Council last year passed Resolution 17-246, giving city officials the go-ahead to initiate condemnation action against Dohmen-
Ramirez. Administration officials supported the measure.
But Ozawa told committee members Oct. 17 that despite assurances 16 months ago from Caldwell that he would move quickly to condemn the property, “I’ve gotten a lot of stalling and delaying — and I don’t know why.”
“This isn’t the time to be playing politics from the mayor,” Ozawa said. “And I would hope that he would put this policy above politics … because this is a big deal.”
State law requires the counties to provide public access points from the street to the coastline.
Jeanne Ishikawa, deputy director of the city’s Parks and Recreation Department, told the committee that city officials, including Managing Director Roy Amemiya and Emergency Services Director Jim Howe, visited the location and concluded it was not a good place to conduct emergency services operations.
“If you walk the path to the end, there’s no beach left, there’s no sand, there’s only coral,” Ishikawa said. “There was general concurrence that maybe the next step that could happen is a further discussion between (the) committee chair and the property owner to find out what else could take place.”
Once the city formally designates the lane as a beach right of way, it also becomes designated a rescue location, Ishikawa said.
Ozawa disagreed with Ishikawa’s assessment of the site. “I grew up in that area, I’ve surfed down there,” he said. “I wouldn’t trust your observations on one or two occurrences. Over the last 30 years, that place has always had sand at that one particular area. There wouldn’t be this call from the community for decades to open up that access if it wasn’t needed.”
He added, “It’s so odd that all of the sudden the mayor is changing course this year right around now. Because up until … the last few months, he’s been very supportive of this effort.”
Ozawa is among Mayor Kirk Caldwell’s staunchest critics, and former state Rep. Tommy Waters, who is challenging Ozawa’s re-election bid, is a longtime ally of the mayor.
Council Chairman Ernie Martin and Councilwoman Kymberly Pine noted that there is no reference in the original resolution to using the site for emergency services access, nor was there any discussion about that before the resolution was adopted.
“It was for public access,” Pine said. “It sounds like the focus has been lost, and it’s gone to a more technical nature that goes beyond the scope of the intent of the Council.”
Martin said it was inexcusable that the administration has not kept the Council apprised of the situation.
Ozawa said the city Department of Design and Construction announced in June that it was done with the offer process and had forwarded the matter to city attorneys to file a complaint in state Circuit Court for condemnation.
On Aug. 3 the Department of Corporation Counsel told his office it had prepared a draft resolution requesting authorization to file a condemnation complaint and that it would be done “within a week,” Ozawa said.
But he received no further communication from city officials, prompting him to introduce his second resolution. “And today … the administration is changing its position on the condemnation action,” he said.
Deputy Corporation Counsel Duane Pang said after Dohmen-Ramirez rejected the city’s offer, his agency prepared a draft resolution to acquire the property. That draft was sent to the administration, he said.
“The various departments have to indicate to us whether there’s a public purpose or not, and they have to make a request for condemnation,” he said. “And then based on their request and your approval, we’d move forward.”
Corporation Counsel Donna Leong agreed Oct. 17 to Ozawa’s request to have her agency draft a resolution so he can introduce it for approval.
Dohmen-Ramirez could not be reached for comment. In a written editorial published by the Honolulu Star-Advertiser in May, Dohmen-Ramirez said the lane was constructed by the former Bishop Estate (now Kamehameha Schools) to provide access to four properties that were later sold, one of which he now owns.
“My gate had existed for many years but was removed and stolen by a vandal,” Dohmen-Ramirez said. “I merely reinstalled it, because of a sharp increase in vandalism, theft and sleepless nights for us.”
Dohmen-Ramirez said there are other areas along Portlock Road that are available for the public to access the beach.
