A compromise is emerging on an offer by a nonprofit organization to partner with the city on creating an “inclusive” playground — with a change of venue.

Kakaako Waterfront Park is now the place where, under a revised plan to be detailed Saturday, the city will devote a plot of land at the park for the playground, open to all children and accessible to those with disabilities.

It’s a welcome change from the initial proposal to build on a 1-acre section of Ala Moana Regional Park. That notion drew heated opposition from those who want Ala Moana to be refurbished but largely unchanged.

Planning again would begin “from scratch,” said Tiffany Vara, president of the nonprofit Pa‘ani Kakou, members of which, she said, are “glad to be in conversation with all the parties.”

Neither the permit process nor the project details or financing have been unveiled yet, but the basic concept seems intact, featuring a “splash pad” water feature, child-scale zip lines and a disability-accessible bathroom.

Pa‘ani Kakou had hoped to win the backing of the community by taking on the expense of building the playground, adding a concession business to help sustain the operations and add to its security.

Whatever final plans are made for Kakaako, making the project similarly affordable for the city would be imperative — all the more so since the city’s tax-revenue picture has flattened.

This week the city’s property assessments came in at only 1.7% higher than the previous year, a noticeable stall compared with annual increases three times that much over several years. Although the exact property tax revenue won’t be known until the new rate is set six months from now, this does not bode well for tax coffers.

Surely the city won’t be able to afford adding much to its duties of parks maintenance, already with a hefty backlog of tasks. The new playground plan will need to be developed with an eye to reducing ongoing burdens on the taxpayer.

That said, there is a benefit to the general public as well as to the special-needs community, even beyond the play opportunity the project would provide. Kakaako Waterfront Park is one of many that have been plagued with vandalism and deterioration stemming from the homeless encampments that take root there.

Formerly controlled by the Hawaii Community Development Authority, the regulatory agency overseeing the revival and growth in Kakaako and other redevelopment zones, ownership of Kakaako Waterfront Park and sister parks nearby have been transferred to the city.

And the city is rightly pursuing ways to “activate” the Kakaako parks, underutilized for years. The increasing population in the highrises across Ala Moana Boulevard could ensure better use of that green space by the public, deterring the persistent vagrancy.

Finding ways to bring more families to the park, starting with those using the playground, would be an apt way to kick off this process. Having more traffic also would benefit the long-suffering Hawaii Children’s Discovery Center, another nonprofit attraction where staff has struggled to ward off disruptions from homeless individuals.

Further, Andrew Pereira, spokesman for Mayor Kirk Caldwell, said the city is considering other activation efforts, such as marking off an area for one or more athletic fields. Community and school sports teams could reserve them for practices, he said.

Given enough time to plan and a site with broader support, what began as a contentious debate could have a happier ending: recreational resources that will be embraced, and used well.