Oʻahu Group
Wāwāmalu Beach is Healing as City Reclaims Its Park-Land
Boulders were sourced from a nearby location where Henry J. Kaiser stored them during the development of Hawaiʻi Kai in the 1950s
The boulder barriers guarding Wāwāmalu Beach (the NE section of Sandy Beach Park) and protecting the natural features on the Ka Iwi coast, were initiated by Sierra Club activism; championed by Council Chair Tommy Waters; pushed by the Hawaii Kai Neighborhood Board, Livable Hawaii Kai Hui, and The Surfrider Foundation; enabled by the Caldwell Administration; and installed by the Blangiardi Administration in January and April this year. Only the occasional off-roader succeeds in penetrating the barriers and driving on the beach and among the dunes – we await the installation of a guardrail by the State Department of Transportation to seal the highway entry points used by the off-roaders.
First park signage is posted at the NE access area known as “Alan Davis”
Encouragingly, the Honolulu Police Department has adopted the “zero-tolerance for driving trespassers” at Wāwāmalu Beach that the Hawaiʻi Kai Neighborhood Board requested.And in August, the Parks Department’s East Honolulu District Office installed the first “parks” signs to be seen at Wāwāmalu Beach since 2018 – at its NE access area (aka Alan Davis) – a sure sign that the city is reclaiming this Wāwāmalu Beach section of Sandy Beach Park from the off-roaders who have degraded it for decades. Hopefully, more parks signage will soon be installed elsewhere along the park border.In another good sign, Mayor Blangiardi scheduled a blessing for this reclaimed city-park area for mid-September (since postponed due to deteriorating COVID-19 pandemic conditions). Stay tuned for the rescheduling of the public blessing and opportunity for Sierra Club to publicly claim another victory.
Evidence of the improved growing conditions for the native plants that populate the dunes: ʻAkiʻaki grass and pōhuehue vines creep from the dunes into former driving lanes
Want to contribute to the healing of the natural features of the Ka Iwi Coast?808CleanUps stages conservation efforts at neighboring Ka Iwi State Scenic Shoreline every Tuesday from 4-6 PM. The scenery and camaraderie are terrific, and personal physical conditioning, work gloves, tools, and ice water are provided.William Reese Liggett Help Protect the Natural & Cultural Features of Wāwāmalu Beach!808 732 4489r 808 222 2088c
