Natatorium plans viewed

Honolulu Star-Bulletin
By Rob Shikina

Some members of a special task force say their work will help the city make a decision on the fate of the Waikiki War Natatorium Memorial.

NATATORIUM THROUGH THE YEARS

The Waikiki Natatorium War Memorial consists of a pool twice as large as an Olympic-size pool, bleachers, restrooms and the iconic three-arch facade. The chronology:

  • 1927: Built with $178,050 to honor 101 soldiers killed and nearly 10,000 others who served in World War I.
  • 1928: First water quality problems begin occurring.
  • 1963: Natatorium closed because of poor water quality.
  • 1979: Site officially closed.
  • 1980: Natatorium placed on the National Register of Historic Places.
  • 1999: Lawsuit stops demolition.
  • 2000: Natatorium restoration starts.
  • 2001: Suit is filed to stop restoration.
  • 2002: State comes out with new regulations for saltwater pools.
  • 2004: Lawsuit stops the restoration.

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Source: Wil Chee—Planning Inc., a consulting company for the city

“It’s a good process to put it all on the table so we can make a fair decision,” said Rick Egged, president of the Waikiki Improvement Association, who is one of 17 task force members. “It’s not an easy task because there’s so many differing opinions.”

The task force met for about 90 minutes yesterday at its first meeting and grilled the city’s consultant about four options.

The options were to demolish the Natatorium, do nothing, remove the pool and relocate the facade and renovate completely.

The city invited community leaders—including veterans, community volunteers, business representatives, a scientist and a state legislator—to serve on the task force.

The task force will meet once a month and present its best option on the Natatorium to the city in September.

Mayor Mufi Hannemann had said in his State of the City address that he is considering demolition of the memorial’s pool and moving the facade to another location.

“I wanted to do this community process,” said Hannemann at the meeting, adding that he recognized the purpose of the memorial. “Even though you feel instinctively that this is the way to go, nothing beats the validation of the community to ensure that all hands are on board.”

He told the task force that he did not want them to study the issue to death.

“I don’t want to put this off. I’d really like for us to do this,” he said. “This in many instances remains an eyesore.”

Donna L. Ching, vice president of the Friends of the Natatorium, who is on the task force, said the panel will bring out information on the site that has been previously limited.

“I think the task force will round out the discussion,” she said. “I’m very hopeful.”

Kiersten Faulkner, executive director of the Historic Hawai’i Foundation, said she believes the city should restore the memorial.

“It’s on both the national and the state register of historic places,” said Faulkner. “It’s played a critical role in marine history as well as military history as well as the development of Waikiki as well as a place where keiki go to swim and to learn ocean safety. It’s an amazing place. It should be again.”

But she supported the task force.

“I think it’s a really important step to bring all the stakeholders together to evaluate what is it that matters to us and how that plays out on this particular site,” she said. “I commend the city for taking this step, and I hope that it will truly be an honest look at all the alternatives and what appeals for us as a community.”

Mayor forms natatorium task force

Honolulu Advertiser
Advertiser Staff

The mayor has announced the formation of a task force on the future of the Waikiki War Memorial Natatorium.

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“This community-based planning process will help us decide how best to honor the symbolism and history of the Natatorium while also addressing the real problems presented by its current condition,” Mayor Mufi Hannemann said. “Our community has wrestled with this dilemma for far too long, and it’s time to move forward with solutions.”

The task force members include Rick Bernstein, of the New Otani Kaimana Beach Hotel Coalition; Rick Egged, president of the Waikiki Improvement Association; Kiersten Faulkner, executive director of Historic Hawaii Foundation; and Linuce Pang, president of the Friends of the Natatorium.

Honolulu posts ideas to replace natatorium

Honolulu Advertiser
By Mary Vorsino
Advertiser Urban Honolulu Writer

RICHARD AMBO | The Honolulu Advertiser

The natatorium’s facade may or may not remain, and is not included in the cost estimates. Design 3B would keep the bleachers that are inside the war memorial in place.
Advertiser library photo

The natatorium gate has been locked for decades. To the left are some of the bleachers that might be kept along the shore.
Advertiser library photo

A sandy beach could be created at the site of the crumbling Waikiki War Memorial Natatorium for as little as $1.7 million — not counting the cost of demolishing the monument — and with little to no effect on the surrounding shoreline, says a new city-commissioned report that weighs proposals for doing away with the landmark.

Some of the options, the report notes, could also cause “significant erosion” at adjacent Kaimana Beach.

The study, which presents seven options for creating a sandy beach at the site, comes as the city weighs what to do with the legendary saltwater pool. Conducted by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, it will be used to help make a decision. A separate study is being conducted to estimate the costs of refurbishing the natatorium, whose fate has been in limbo since it was closed for safety reasons in 1979.

The Army Corps study, which cost $300,000, lays out how the creation of a sandy beach at the site is possible using a variety of rocky structures, including T-head groins, straight groins and breakwaters.

Three of the options could result in erosion of Kaimana Beach, which the study indicates could be significant; three of the options would have no impact on Kaimana; and one of the options would not impact Kaimana but would create a sandy beach in front of the natatorium described as “unstable.”

The study estimates that putting in a beach and structures to keep the sand in place and deter erosion at Kaimana would likely cost from $1.7 million to $6.3 million — not counting demolishing the pool and moving the facade. The most expensive option studied includes keeping the pink facade and bleachers intact, while removing the swimming pool to create a sand beach bounded by an L-groin, a straight groin and two breakwaters. That option is the most costly because it would create a larger beach than the other alternatives.

The cost estimate does not take into account any work that might be needed to the facade.

Although the options aren’t cheap, the city believes they are far less expensive than restoring the natatorium. A project in 2000 aimed at reopening the pool estimated a renovation would cost about $11.5 million, but onlookers said that figure was far too low because it didn’t consider required health equipment and monitoring for saltwater pools.

The Army Corps report didn’t attempt to calculate how much it would cost to demolish the natatorium, and city officials say an analysis of that is also under way. A 1994 study estimated the cost of demolition at $533,000, or about $766,000 in today’s dollars.

POOL RESCUE OPTION

The city has stressed it has not yet made a call on whether to tear out the swimming pool, but those who support its restoration say they are becoming more concerned — especially in the wake of the report. This coming Memorial Day, at an annual veterans’ commemoration event at the natatorium, groups are planning for what they believe will likely be a last-ditch effort to raise awareness and to kick off a donation campaign to try to save the historic site.
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“If you destroy the swimming pool, you’re obviously destroying part and parcel of the war memorial,” said Fred Ballard, secretary of the Friends of the Natatorium and president of the O’ahu Veterans Council. “We don’t want to be the first state in the union to tear down a war memorial. We obviously want to maintain the facility.”

Others disagree that tearing down the pool means doing away with the memorial.

Jim Bickerton, attorney for the Kaimana Beach Coalition, which has opposed efforts to revamp the natatorium’s swimming pool, said the Army Corps study provides some good ideas for opening up prime beach space in the area. He added that demolition of the pool would benefit more park and beach users and do away with a safety hazard.

“We certainly think that a beach and a public park can easily be designed and built as a living memorial,” he said, adding that the Army Corps report shows how the city can both create a new beach and preserve the existing adjacent beach. “This is something the community really needs and the cost is significantly less than any number that’s ever been quoted for restoring … the natatorium. We think it makes a lot of sense.”

The Army Corps report is part of a push by the city to resolve the natatorium’s future.

Mayor Mufi Hannemann said earlier this year that the “fate of the Waikiki natatorium has dogged the city for decades” and he is “seriously considering” demolition of the natatorium and relocation of the facade fronting the Olympic-size pool farther inland or to another location, because its restoration would likely be too costly. The mayor has also said, though, that a decision won’t be made until the city hears from a broad cross-section of stakeholders.

Collins Lam, deputy director of the city Department of Design and Construction, said he hopes to have a task force of people on both sides of the issue formed before the start of summer. It’s unclear when the group will be ready to send its recommendations to the mayor.

But it appears a decision could come before the end of the year, given the natatorium’s frail condition.

CRUMBLING AWAY

The Waikiki war memorial started to show significant maintenance issues as far back as the 1970s, and the pool deck now has massive holes where concrete has corroded away or fallen into the ocean, leaving exposed rusted rebar behind. In 2004, city engineers said the concrete deck and perimeter sea walls were serious collapse hazards.

The pool opened in 1927, with famed swimmer and surfer Duke Kahanamoku diving in for the first swim. The swimming pool was built with territorial money to honor those who fought in World War I, and in memory of those who died. The well-known landmark is on national and state registers of historic places.

Over the past decade, the city has spent millions of dollars on the natatorium.

In 1999, then-mayor Jeremy Harris launched a project to restore it. But the project only got as far as its first phase, aimed at fixing the facade and its arch. The second phase of work was halted after a court ruled that the city would have to obtain Health Department permits and adhere to stricter-than-expected standards to open the saltwater pool. Then, in 2004, a collapse of part of the site’s deck prompted emergency repairs.

That work was never completed, though, because Hannemann shelved the $6.1 million repair effort after taking office in January 2005. Since then, only minor repairs have been done to the facade.

The Army Corps study, which took 18 months to conduct, uses wave action data and other calculations to determine the effects of creating a sandy beach in front of the natatorium. It also lays out how much sandy beach each option would create.

The study says the most expensive option would create a 64,300-square-foot beach, while the cheapest option would create a 3,200-square-foot beach. The other options create beaches ranging from 10,500 to 47,300 square feet.

The study does not have a recommendation on which option the city should pursue.

Natatorium: City should save essence of memorial

Honolulu Advertiser

It’s Waikiki’s most famous symbol of municipal neglect.

The crumbling War Memorial Natatorium — more than 80 years old and closed for the last 30 — remains a silent rebuke to the years of bitter, still unresolved debate over its future, into which millions of taxpayer dollars have been poured.

It’s long past time to make a decision about the natatorium’s fate, painful as it may be. With the exception of the restored Beaux-Arts style arch and facade, the monument has become a deterioriating safety hazard — hardly a fitting tribute to the 101 World War I veterans it was meant to honor.

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So it’s a welcome sign to see Mayor Hannemann administration’s latest efforts to finally resolve this problem. Public meetings that are planned should offer residents clear choices on the pros and cons of various options, including one to fully restore the pool and bleachers — the primary point of contention.

The natatorium’s defenders, including the Friends of the Natatorium, make a reasonable argument that the pool is an integral part of the historic monument, which opened with Duke Kahanamoku’s inaugural swim in 1927.

Nonetheless, it’s unlikely the city can afford to pay for a full restoration. So unless a workable plan involving a public-private partnership can be forged, it’s time to move on: Save what can be saved, pay proper respect to our war veterans, and put the shoreline back to public use, with or without a pool.

Natatorium pool may go

Honolulu Advertiser
By Mary Vorsino
Advertiser Urban Honolulu Writer

NATATORIUM’S FATE

City officials are looking to bring closure to years of debate over what to do with the crumbling Waikiki War Memorial Natatorium. They say they are “seriously considering” demolishing the legendary saltwater pool at the site and will hold discussions with residents as early as this month to discuss the option — along with other possibilities.

Officials stressed that no decision on what to do with the natatorium has been made.

But they said they are eager to bring the facility out of its current state of limbo — deteriorating rapidly, and with the swimming pool closed. Collins Lam, deputy director of the city Department of Design and Construction, said officials will start making presentation on possible options for the natatorium and their costs this month or next.

The possibility of a decision sometime soon on the natatorium’s fate — 30 years after the pool was closed to swimmers because of safety concerns — worries those who want the pool saved. They say it appears officials already have made up their minds to tear down the pool and are concerned a demolition would have more support in these tough fiscal times.

Friends of the Natatorium President Linuce Pang said instead of spending money to demolish the pool, the city should spend money to restore it. “The city is saying that they’re short of money. But if you destroy something, you still have to have money,” he said, adding that the facade of the natatorium shouldn’t be considered a higher priority than the saltwater swimming pool it fronts.

“The pool is the memorial,” he said.

Others say demolishing the pool and keeping its pink facade, with its grand arch, would open up precious beach space and benefit more park users and beach goers. “That pool was not designed to last a long time. It’s a health and safety hazard,” said Jim Bickerton, attorney and member of the Kaimana Beach Coalition, which has opposed efforts to rehabilitate the pool.

He said his group would like to see the facade saved and a beach formed where the pool sits. “We think that makes a lot of sense,” Bickerton said.

Lam, with the city, declined to give details on the information to be included in community presentations on the Waikiki facility. But he said residents will be given an idea of how much each option would cost, and the pros and cons of each alternative. He added that demolishing the pool would cost “significantly” less than renovating it, but he wasn’t ruling any options out.

City officials said they are studying a variety of scenarios for the natatorium, including demolishing the pool and setting the facade farther away from the ocean, dismantling the entire memorial or renovating the entire site.

Officials have not said when a final decision on the natatorium will be made, but observers predict one could come as early as this fall. In addition to seeking public comment through meetings, officials have said they want to convene a working group of interested parties to make a recommendation of its own to the mayor — a process that conceivably could take months.

The mayor said in his State of the City address last month that the “fate of the Waikiki natatorium has dogged the city for decades” and that the back-and-forth between those who want the pool preserved and those who want the beach restored “has led to a standoff.”

He added, “One of the recommendations we’re seriously considering is the demolition of the pool to open up more beach space, and the reconstruction of the facade further inland or at another appropriate location.” But though officials are leaning toward demolition of the Olympic-size pool, city spokesman Bill Brennan said last week that “there’s nothing (that has) been finalized about it yet.”

OPINIONS VARY

In Waikiki last week, passers-by offered mixed opinions on what should happen to the memorial.

Some said they didn’t think the pool could — or should — be saved, given the dwindling municipal treasury. “They don’t have the money. Otherwise I’d say rebuild it,” said one man, sitting under a trellis outside the natatorium.

But others said the big pricetag should be put in perspective.

Though it’s unclear just how much it would take to renovate the memorial today, a project kicked off in 2000 aimed at reopening the pool estimated $11.5 million would do it. That project was never finished because officials ran into legal problems over the work.

Lapaka Brandon, 63, of Makaha, said he realizes a renovation of the pool would cost tens of millions of dollars. But, he said, it would be well worth it. “My father used to take us there when we were kids,” he said. “I think we spend a lot of money on a lot of frivolous things anyway. It depends on your priorities.”

Robert and Caroline Hovey, frequent visitors to the Islands from Washington state, also supported saving the natatorium pool — despite the high cost. “They should be preserving as much of the past as they possibly can,” said Robert Hovey, who added that the natatorium is something of a draw for tourists. The spot is mentioned in a host of O’ahu travel guides.

WORLD WAR I MEMORIAL

The pool opened in August 1927, with famed swimmer and surfer Duke Kahanamoku diving in for the first swim in front of a capacity crowd. The pool was built with territorial money to honor those who fought in World War I, and in memory of those who died.

The natatorium is on national and state registers of historic places.

The memorial started to show significant deterioration in the 1970s, and the pool deck now sports massive holes where concrete has corroded away or crumbled into the ocean. A report for the city issued in 2004 that detailed the condition of the natatorium said that the concrete deck was in imminent danger of collapse, and that the perimeter sea walls had a “potential collapse hazard.”

That report also warned that the steady deterioration of the swimming pool threatens to undermine the structural stability of the bleachers at the site, the perimeter sea wall and the facade.

Over the last decade, the city has spent millions of dollars on the natatorium.

In 1999, former Mayor Jeremy Harris launched an $11.5 million project to fully restore the landmark. The first phase, completed a year later, included fixing the arch and facade.

But the second phase of work was halted after a court ruling determined the city would have to obtain Health Department permits and adhere to stricter-than-expected standards to open the salt water pool. Then, in 2004, a collapse of part of the site’s deck prompted emergency repairs. That work was never completed, though, because Mayor Mufi Hannemann shelved the $6.1 million repair effort after taking office in January 2005. During his administration, minor repairs have been done to the facade.

Hannemann also gave the go-ahead for a consultant to study possible options for the natatorium. That study is still under way, but is to be completed soon.

Reach Mary Vorsino at mvorsino@honoluluadvertiser.com.

Mayor says he is “seriously considering” tearing down the pool, retaining the facade, and pledges to form a committee of community members to discuss its future.
BRUCE ASATO | The Honolulu Advertiser

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HISTORY OF MEMORIAL

1927: Built to honor 101 Hawai’i World War I veterans. Also this year, the site hosts a national outdoor swimming championship event and becomes a popular recreational spot.

1940s: Army uses pool to train for World War II.

1950s and ’60s: O’ahu fifth-grade public school students participate in swimming program at salt-water pool.

1979: Closed to the public because of deteriorating conditions.

1999: Honolulu Mayor Jeremy Harris initiates plans to restore landmark.

2001: City finishes fixing facade, bleachers and public restrooms.

2004: Part of deck collapses. City begins emergency repairs.

2005: Mayor Mufi Hannemann takes office, halts repair work. He launches engineering studies exploring alternative uses for the site.

2007: Army Corps of Engineers begins studies assessing the condition of shoreline.

2008: Wil Chee-Planning Inc. kicks off study on possible options for the natatorium.

February 2009: Mayor says he is “seriously considering” tearing down the pool, retaining the facade, and pledges to form a committee of community members to discuss its future.

March-April 2009: City plans to take possible options for natatorium to the community, in the form of public meetings.

Replacing an eagle’s head on the facade in 2000.

Honolulu studies work on crumbling memorial

Honolulu Advertiser
By Alyssa S. Navares
Advertiser Staff Writer

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The natatorium, increasingly decrepit behind its recently restored facade, is closed to the public but is used as a base for ocean safety officers.

The natatorium, increasingly decrepit behind its recently restored facade, is closed to the public but is used as a base for ocean safety officers.
RICHARD AMBO | The Honolulu Advertiser

NATATORIUM TIME LINE

1927 — Built to honor 101 Hawai’i World War I veterans. Also this year, the site hosts a national outdoor swimming championship event and became a popular recreational spot with long lines to jump from the 36-foot-high platform and to play volleyball.

1940s — Army uses pool to train for World War II.

1950s and ’60s — O’ahu fifth-grade public school students participate in swimming program at salt-water pool.

1980 — Closed to the public because of deteriorating conditions.

1999 — Honolulu Mayor Jeremy Harris initiates plans to restore landmark.

2001 — City finishes fixing facade, bleachers and public restrooms.

2004 — Part of deck collapses. City begins emergency repairs.

2005 — Mayor Mufi Hannemann takes office, halts repair work. He launches engineering studies exploring alternative uses for the site.

2007 — Army Corps of Engineers begins studies assessing the condition of shoreline. Wil Chee-Planning Inc. plans to use those findings as it compiles recommendations for City Hall regarding the natatorium’s future.

The city is gearing up to patch the most glaring structural decay at the Waikiki War Memorial Natatorium, as studies aim to determine the future of the 80-year-old landmark.

“The natatorium is gradually deteriorating, and it’s difficult to predict how much longer it can maintain its present condition,” said city project manager Terry Hildebrand.

City officials three years ago confirmed that the ocean-fed pool and its underlying structure have extensive corrosion and cracking. One report concluded that the entire structure could eventually collapse if the damage is left unchecked.

Hildebrand said the city plans to check on the matter this summer through a four-month project that is expected to include a site survey and various minor repairs. He has submitted a proposal for the project, which will cost $40,000 to $50,000, to the city Department of Budget and Fiscal Services and expects feedback within a few weeks.

The project — an amendment to a standing contract with consultant firm Wil Chee-Planning Inc. — also is scheduled to produce recommendations for the World War I memorial’s future, which could range from full restoration to scrapping everything except the site’s distinctive Beaux Arts arch.

The Army Corps of Engineers this month began a yearlong $300,000 study of shoreline conditions between Diamond Head and Pearl Harbor. Its findings will be factored into the project’s recommendations.

Crumbling concrete has kept the natatorium closed since 1980. Rusted iron gates and wooden boards block public access, but four concrete eagles peering down from atop the natatorium’s grand arch offer a symbol of the site’s past.

A nonprofit citizen group, Friends of the Natatorium, has pushed for years to see the memorial restored to its original glory. Members hope to bring back a learn-to-swim program there, while using proceeds from a snack bar and gift shop for maintenance.

Peter Apo, spokesman for the group, said his chief concern is that the site continues to fall apart. “If we drag out this natatorium situation too much longer, it will be demolished by our neglect,” Apo said.

Walter Burgow, an 85-year-old World War II veteran who sat with friends in front of the structure last week, agreed.

“If the city doesn’t do something soon, everyone will forget about what the memorial really stands for,” Burgow said. “This place is how I remember my fellow brothers who never came back from war.”

While growing up in Kalihi, Burgow said, he would take the bus to the natatorium, where he learned to swim in the 100-meter saltwater pool and enjoyed diving off the two-level towers. Built in the 1920s — during a national craze for natural-water swimming — the natatorium also attracted top-notch swimmers, such as Buster Crabbe and Duke Kahanamoku. The Army used it as a training site during World War II.

Mayor Mufi Hannemann does not want to restore the pool, according to city spokesman Bill Brennan. But depending on study results, leaving the arch as a tribute to veterans and expanding the beach area are possibilities for the site.

Former Honolulu Mayor Jeremy Harris in 1999 launched an $11.5 million project to renovate the structure and to fix the cracks in its swimming pool. The first phase, which was completed a year later, included fixing the arch and facades. But legal obstacles, including a court ruling that required the city to obtain permits to renovate the swimming pool, halted the second phase of work.

In 2004, a collapse of a portion of the site’s deck prompted emergency repairs. Hannemann shelved the $6.1 million repair effort after taking office in January 2005, saying the city needed to focus on more critical services, such as repairing roads and sewers.

The city’s proposed minor repairs project, which could start in August, focuses on the structural integrity of natatorium areas on the ocean side, including the pool and deck. It also is expected to include a careful look at the decorative arch and concrete bleachers. Two engineers and advisers from Wil Chee-Planning will survey the area.

“We are primarily preparing ourselves for an emergency and don’t want to be caught by surprise,” Hildebrand said.

Upon approval from the city’s Budget Department, the project proposal will be submitted to the state Historic Preservation Division and the Office of Conservation and Coastal Lands. Both will make recommendations before work can get under way.

Susan Tasaki, architecture branch chief of the state Historic Preservation Division, said her office strives to preserve landmarks from earlier times.

“We would support any kind of plans to make sure no one gets hurt and the structure isn’t forgotten,” Tasaki said.

Waikiki Natatorium shore will tell if pool can go

Honolulu Star-Bulletin
By Crystal Kua
ckua@starbulletin.com

Mayor Mufi Hannemann’s administration is exploring alternate uses for the decaying Waikiki War Memorial Natatorium, and one option might include getting rid of its controversial saltwater pool.

Yesterday, the City Council Budget Committee approved an agreement between the city and the Army Corps of Engineers to split the $300,000 cost to study the shoreline surrounding the memorial to World War I veterans. The study is expected to be completed in early 2008.

“The results will be incorporated into a bigger planning report that will then give us direction on what to do with the facility,” said Clifford Lau, facilities design chief with the city Department of Design and Construction. “Part of the report will need to address what occurred in the past and what’s possible in the future.”

A final Council vote on the agreement is slated for Dec. 13.

Hannemann has not been a fan of fully restoring the Natatorium, which would include keeping the saltwater pool. He has said it would be better to keep the memorial’s arch to pay tribute to the veterans and expand the surrounding beach.

Former Mayor Jeremy Harris moved to restore the nearly 80-year-old concrete structure along with the pool, but legal obstacles stopped work on the pool and halted the entire restoration.

As one of his first acts as mayor, Hannemann stopped $6.1 million in emergency repairs on the Natatorium in January 2005.

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“It’s computer modeling of waves and currents. So there’s a circulation model and a wave transformation model,” said Tom Smith, a coastal engineer with the Corps of Engineers.

“The goal is to not just to restore the beach, but also to stabilize it so we don’t lose the beach,” Army Corps engineer Milton Yoshimoto said.

Yoshimoto said the corps has about half of the necessary money, with the other half slated to be budgeted next year.

“The Natatorium study would be a high priority for funding,” he said.

The Corps of Engineers study would be forwarded to a planning consultant that the city has hired to come up with a final report.

Lau said the study could lead to several alternatives, including not taking any action, relocating the memorial walls and partial or complete removal of the pool.

“I can’t tell you at this time that that is the exact solution, because one aspect is that there’s existing beaches there that we need to preserve,” Lau said.

Lau said the Natatorium restrooms that were closed because of corrosion and crumbling concrete have been reopened after work was done to correct the problems.

Waikiki lagoon a possibility

Honolulu Advertiser
By Lynda Arakawa
Advertiser Staff Writer

The state Department of Land and Natural Resources is exploring an idea to create a new lagoon-type beach next to the Waikiki Aquarium.

The lagoon would be between the aquarium and the concession area, said Dolan Eversole, a University of Hawai’i coastal geologist and adviser to the state’s Office of Conservation and Coastal Lands. He added that it would be similar in concept, although a third or half the size of, the lagoons at Ko Olina.

Such a project would involve excavating part of Kapi’olani Park to make way for a lagoon-type beach spanning roughly 200 feet horizontally and about 150 feet inland from the existing shoreline, he said. Breakwater structures allowing for water circulation would likely be in line with the existing shoreline, he said. Eversole estimated the project could cost up to $4 million, but said there are many variables that would affect the cost.

“It would provide a new recreational opportunity — quiet water setting, swimming and recreational beach,” Eversole said.

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The department doesn’t have funding for such a project and has yet to receive feedback from the administration and the community about the idea, he said. If state officials decide to go ahead with the proposal, the department would first need funding from the Legislature for a feasibility study, which could take up to two years and result in different designs for the project, he said.

“We’re a long ways off from actually implementing it, but we’re kind of bouncing the idea around,” Eversole said.

“We’re just thinking of another recreational opportunity and a way to enhance the (Kapi’olani) Park use. This hasn’t really gone through the channels. We want to talk to the mayor about it and the city officials and kind of get their ideas, too.”

The department also is looking at long-term approaches to protect beaches from sand erosion. Officials plan to begin a $500,000, 30-day sand replenishment project this month at Kuhio Beach.

“We’re always interested in protecting existing beaches where we can and enhancing those that are experiencing erosion and coastal damage — trying to enhance those opportunities,” he said. “And Waikiki is kind of a special case because of its social, recreational and economic value as well.”

Reach Lynda Arakawa at larakawa@honoluluadvertiser.com.

Natatorium faces another study

Honolulu Advertiser
By Robbie Dingeman
Advertiser Staff Writer

Next month, the city expects to hire a planning consultant to consider the future of the Waikiki War Memorial Natatorium. Again.

Crumbling concrete and other hazardous conditions have kept the Waikiki War Memorial Natatorium closed to swimmers since 1979. A new study has been ordered to possibly once and for all settle the future of the once-grand waterfront memorial.
Photos by GREGORY YAMAMOTO | The Honolulu Advertiser

The waterfront memorial to veterans of World War I awaits the next chapter in its 79-year history. The crumbling ocean-water pool remains mired in controversy with supporters still pushing for full restoration of the once-grand swimming pool and opponents arguing for more beach space.

The facility has been closed to swimming since June 1979. The last formal work on the structure ended in 2000 after then-Mayor Jeremy Harris oversaw the completion of a facelift and renovation of the arches and bleachers.

The new study will mark the first city action since emergency repairs in 2004 after a section of the broad concrete pool deck collapsed.

Eugene Lee, deputy director of the city Department of Design and Construction, said Mayor Mufi Hannemann requested and got a total of $500,000 for planning and design in the current budget. A portion of that money will be used to analyze alternate uses for the memorial that all stop short of full restoration.

Lee said the possible uses — including keeping the arches and bleachers — also “will run the gamut from essentially beach restoration or relocation of some of the structures to total elimination of the structures.”

He said the city expects to award a contract to a planning consultant by next month to complete an analysis over the next two years. Lee said the city will not pursue full restoration because of safety worries, cost concerns and the state Health Department’s published saltwater pool regulations, which “would be very, very hard to meet.”

He said the city monitors the crumbling structure and posted signs and erected barriers to keep people out.

In the fiscal year that’s about to begin, Hannemann asked for $40,000 in planning and design and $5.3 million in construction, but Lee said the council cut construction money in half.

City Customer Services Director Jeff Coelho said the Hannemann administration is trying to keep the structure safe while analyzing the best solution. Coelho said that means shoring up the shoreline and trying to stabilize the structure.

“We can’t let it deteriorate to the point where it becomes a public hazard,” he said.

Mo Palepale of Kalihi and Vehi Sevelo of Kane’ohe, both 20, say they like to go to the beach near the memorial. The Natatorium has been closed their whole life.

“Ever since we were little, it’s been locked up,” Palepale said.

Sevelo favors restoration: “They should fix it for the locals; they should make use of the areas.” But they both know that financing the project is a problem.

Lee’s department assured City Council members that the construction money would only be used to fix the memorial if other portions of it fell apart.

Lee said the city also hopes to engage the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in a separate contract to study the impact on the coastline of different solutions. That study is estimated to cost about $300,000.

Supporters and opponents of full restoration agree that the Natatorium’s historical facade should be part of any future plans.

The fate of the memorial has been debated for decades. By May 2000, the Friends of the Natatorium group celebrated a big change: the restoration of the historical facade. That cost $4.4 million of the $11.5 million that the City Council had approved to spend on the monument.

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Council members backed away from other phases of restoration, and Harris, an advocate for restoration, left office. In a speech in February 2005, Hannemann said, “We’ve suspended work on the Waikiki Natatorium to save us from having to pour more good money after bad.”

Architect Ed Pskowski of the firm Leo A. Daly first started working on the project in 1988 and became a big proponent of full restoration. He remembers swimming in the Natatorium in the 1970s and still hopes for a day when his kids and grandkids could swim there, too.

He fondly recalls the Memorial Day service last month when Hannemann gave permission for the Royal Hawaiian Band to perform, and about 200 people gathered to honor the war dead and enjoy the memorial.

Pskowski said any projects will be complicated by the status of the monument on the national and state historic registers. While some people favor moving the arches, Pskowski said those options range from expensive to impossible.

“The arches are basically stucco over small concrete blocks that are on a foundation,” Pskowski said.”You just can’t separate anything without it crumbling.”

And he suggests that those who ask for beach restoration look to turn-of-the-century photos that show scoured rock rather than beach near where the Natatorium now exists. “The only reason the beach is there is because of the Natatorium,” he said.

The president of the Friends of the Natatorium is Linuce Pang, a 72-year-old Korean War Navy veteran who has been supporting restoration for 20 years.

Pang maintains that the memorial should be preserved as a monument to those people from Hawai’i who died: “These 101 men and women gave their lives to go clear over to Europe, all the way from Hawai’i. This was to honor them.”

Pang sees that political support for full restoration has ebbed and he’s tired of the politics. “We certainly don’t need any more studies,” he said. “What more do they need to know?”

Attorney Jim Bickerton represents the other viewpoint — the Kaimana Beach Coalition — made up of those who believe the pool should be filled in and the area used as a beach park for the many residents who swim and play there.

“We certainly support Mayor Hannemann’s approach of really studying ways to use the area that will benefit everyone but still pay respect to the veterans,” Bickerton said.

But the coalition opposes restoration of the ocean-water recirculating pool, any use that will increase commercialization of the area, and the idea of a freshwater pool as well. “It would be expensive and pointless to have a traditional chlorinated pool there,” he said.

Bickerton would like to see the expanded beach envisioned by the coalition, as a way to preserve and enhance one of the few ocean recreation areas in town favored by residents over tourists.

“We’re fighting to hold on to that and keep it that way,” Bickerton said. “This is one of the few public beaches in the urban area that’s not blocked off by hotels and has parking.”

Nancy Bannick, vice president of the friends group, said anything but full restoration will result in the memorial’s demise.

“There’s no second choice for the friends,” Bannick said. “We’d just have to stand back and watch it be demolished and say ‘shame, shame.’ ”

City Councilman Charles Djou, who represents Waikiki, sees wisdom on both sides. “I think in an ideal world the Natatorium should be restored. I think it’s a fitting tribute to our veterans,” Djou said.

But he also believes Hannemann needs to focus on core city services such as sewers, roads and public safety without spending money on other things.

“In the near term, they’re doing the right thing,” Djou said.

Reach Robbie Dingeman at rdingeman@honoluluadvertiser.com.

Natatorium repairs on hold

Honolulu Advertiser
By Gordon Y.K. Pang
Advertiser Capitol Bureau

Mayor Mufi Hannemann, in one of his first acts in office, suspended repair work at the Waikiki War Memorial Natatorium yesterday.

Hanneman

The move signals a major shift in the city’s policy on the memorial built to honor Hawai’i soldiers killed in World War I. During 10 years in office that ended Sunday, former Mayor Jeremy Harris succeeded in restoring the Natatorium’s facade and bleachers but was stymied in attempts to fix its deteriorating pool.

Tim Steinberger, acting director for the Department of Design and Construction, yesterday sent a two-paragraph letter to contractor Healy Tibbits Builders stating, “You are directed to suspend all activities and expenditures for this project until further notice.”

Hannemann could not be reached late yesterday but was expected to comment on the issue today, a spokesman for the mayor said.

Last month, Hannemann promised to halt the emergency repair work initiated by Harris. He has also said he hopes to remove the pool and deck while preserving at least the major arch of the facade and possibly the restrooms, and favors more recreational space at the site.

Peter Apo, a spokesman for the Friends of the Natatorium and one-time Waikiki development director under Harris, said his group is disappointed but not surprised by Hannemann’s decision to suspend work, particularly since a majority of City Council members have also gone on record opposing full restoration.
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“We will do everything we can under the law to stop demolition and (attempts) to create a new use at that site,” Apo said.

The city would not need to discuss demolishing the Natatorium because of its poor conditions if government officials had provided the funding to properly maintain it through the years, Apo said.

The Friends group believes the city cannot demolish the pool without the permission of the state Department of Land and Natural Resources and the Legislature, Apo said. What’s more, it will cost $20 million to establish the groins to save the beaches in the area — more than it would take to restore the pool, he said.

Jim Bickerton, attorney for the Save Kaimana Beach Coalition which has opposed full restoration, said his group was pleased by Hannemann’s decision. “We look forward to working with everyone on the next phase which is to make a functional memorial that will expand the beach space available to Honolulu’s public,” he said.

Bickerton said the Harris administration could not provide documents justifying the $20 million estimate for removing the pool and keeping the groins. “We believe Mayor Harris made that up out of whole cloth, it was pure fabrication,” he said.

Bickerton said students at the University of Hawai’i’s College of Engineering recently estimated it would cost “under $3 million” to put a beach at the site of the Natatorium.

He also disagreed that the city would need permission to tear down the pool. “The important thing is to have some form of memorial that Honolulu can afford,” he said.

Reach Gordon Y.K. Pang at gpang@honoluluadvertiser.com or at 525-8070.