‘Everybody thinks I’m not taking care of it (Navatek II), but my hands are tied.’

The Navatek II, which was listing in its Ala Wai Small Boat Harbor slip Saturday, has accrued more than $16,000 in fines for overstaying its welcome at the state’s largest recreational harbor.

State Department of Land and Natural Resources officials posted signs all over the 85-foot vessel, which was impounded in March after the Navatek II maxed out its temporary permit at the harbor. Its owner, Shane Lawler, a local entrepreneur who in the past has worked with dive boats in the Bahamas, said he wants to move the boat but hasn’t found anywhere else it could go.

He had intended to leave the boat at the Ala Wai harbor temporarily, until slips at Kewalo Basin were renovated but those renovations are taking longer than expected.

“The project Kewalo (Basin) has been delayed after delay after delay,” said Lawler. “It’s a large vessel. There’s not too many locations here that you can put a vessel that size.”

As a result, Lawler has run afoul of state laws that limit temporary stays at a small-boat harbor to up to 120 days a year.

He said he doesn’t know where else to take the Small Waterplane Area Twin Hull (SWATH) boat built by Navatek Inc. in Hawaii. Many harbors on the island are crowded and cannot accommodate such a large vessel.

“It’s a huge headache,” he said. “You know, I don’t really know what I can do, so we’ve been doing our best to kind of find a solution and looking around for places.”

He added that the rear left tank takes on water so he had to come every three to four days to plug in the dual bilge pumps to empty it out.

On Saturday, Lawler said the vessel was leaning because someone had stolen the electrical extension cord that supplies power to the pumps. He said he’s responded to 47 camera alerts of break-ins and other crimes since the vessel has been in the harbor.

Now that the state has impounded it, Lawler said he’s not allowed onboard, which makes it even more challenging to address concerns. While DLNR officials send someone to plug in and pump the water out of the vessel every eight to 10 days, Lawler said incidents can still happen.

“Everybody thinks I’m not taking care of it, but my hands are tied,” he said.

Patricia Jordan, an Ilikai Marina resident who witnessed the Navatek II’s predicament during an afternoon walk, said the situation makes for an “eyesore.”

“We originally came from Maryland where our boats and marinas are lovely. We don’t put up with this crap there,” Jordan said. “The state needs to take better care of the harbor. They should raise the slip rents and use it to better maintain the facilities.”

Lawler said he tries to respond to every issue because he has big plans to restore the vessel, which was in the opening scene of the Jurrasic Park II movie. He anticipates investing $3.5 to $4 million to turn it into a high-end attraction called Skye Yacht, which would provide luxury sailing charters, dinner cruises and special events to 40 to 80 passengers. He would also replace the diesel motors with more environmentally friendly electric motors.

But his dream could be slipping away. He said DLNR officials told him if he doesn’t move it soon, they will move it to Keehi Small Boat Harbor, where it will remain state custody, and he’ll have to foot the bill.

“The Department of Land and Natural Resources — I’m not upset with them,” he said. “They’re letting me know we have to move it, we’ve overstayed at the Ala Wai…and we know that, we’re just trying to look for other options of where we can go.”

The Division of Boating and Ocean Recreation has received bids to move the boat at a cost of $37,000 to Keehi Harbor. DLNR officials said they are continuing to work with the owner to “gain control” of the boat.

“So until those discussions are complete it’s not going anywhere,” Dan Dennison, DLNR senior communications manager said in an email.

Lawler is hoping he and DLNR can reach a compromise that would allow him to get the boat up and running in Hawaii.

“If I could get it on land to do the improvements, I could have it operational within six months,” Lawler said. “There wouldn’t be anything else like it here.”

Star-Advertiser reporter Allison Schaefers contributed to this story.