David Shapiro: Ala Moana playground plan a poor fit for historic park

Promoters of a privately funded “world-class” playground at Ala Moana Beach Park portray community concerns about the project as a matter of old fuddy-duddies standing in the way of disabled kids.

But the artist renderings they circulate tell a truer story of what this is about: The glitzy playground with zip lines and splash pads is simply a terrible fit in a historic beach park prized for its beaches and green open space.

The pictures show what looks like a chunk of Disney’s Aulani resort — to some an epitome of the artificial Hawaii — plopped into a park that has stood for generations as an essential part of the real Hawaii.

The project would be directly across the street from the Park Lane luxury condos at Ala Moana Center, whose developers are integral to the 1-acre playground, estimated to cost $3 million.

This isn’t a knock on Aulani, a private resort built on former scrub land in West Oahu to serve visitors who enjoy vacationing at a well-appointed water-and- concrete playground.

Nor does anybody begrudge disabled kids a playground made accessible to them; all city playgrounds should be welcoming to all children.

Ala Moana Park, however, just isn’t the right place to install an island of synthetic blue concrete in a sea of lush green vegetation and golden beaches.

The park’s expansive grass is welcoming to all visitors, and it’s difficult to imagine a child better off splashing in a cement puddle than at the safe and accessible children’s beach at Magic Island.

Regular park users worry it’s a first step toward morphing this magnificent regional park that serves the entire island into a neighborhood park catering to residents of the many luxury condos going up around it.

Especially grating to concerned park users is the political process that got the playground top priority and Mayor Kirk Caldwell’s promise of speedy permitting despite little review in two environmental impact studies for the Ala Moana master plan.

Devoted park users have had to attend meetings and arm-wrestle city officials for years to try to get what they want — mainly, better upkeep of facilities already at Ala Moana.

But influential interests with money need only whisper in the mayor’s ear to get to the front of the line with a project that poorly fits Ala Moana Park.

If the condo developers truly intend their grand playground as a gift to all of Oahu’s children, they should be open to working with the city and community to find a more suitable location.

If the only location they’ll accept is a big piece of our most precious public real estate smack dab across the street from their development, it starts to look more like a Trojan horse than a gift.

Reach David Shapiro at volcanicash@gmail.com.