Reward for Graffiti Arrests

One of the excuses for putting up gates on "private" beach access paths is that locals and visitors will vandalize property if they are allowed on those streets... and unfortunately, those homeowners have a case when idiots -- mostly kids -- tag walls and fences with ugly graffiti. It ruins things for responsible neighbors who are respectful of others.

However, I'm sure there are people out there who know the identity of these taggers. I mean, that's the whole point of "tagging," isn't it? These morons have an infantile need to put their self-chosen name or crude logo on signs, walls, fences, whatever. Then they photograph their tags and crappy spray-painted messes, and post them on different photo sharing sites or YouTube. I'm not going to call what they do "art," because there is no real skill or evidence of talent evident in that kind of tagging.

I'm also willing to put my money where my mouth is. On the public beach access next to Kailuana Place in Kailua, taggers who go by "Slush" and "ET" left their mark on the neighbors' fences and walls. It appears Slush and ET could be young girls, judging from their writing "style" if you can call it that. If you live in Kailua and have kids, ask them if they know who is Slush or ET. Send me whatever info you have by email and if it leads to an arrest, I will send you a check from Beach Access Hawaii for $200. It's not much, but if we can stop these idiots from defacing more property, it will be a start.

Sorry for the long absence between posts. This has been another do-nothing State Legislative session as far as public beach access... or pretty much anything else for that matter. Under Hawaii's bicameral system, even bills that have popular support will get all the way to the end, only to be tabled because of lack of funding or lack of political will to change the status quo. About the only way you can change anything is by going to court and filing a lawsuit against the State or county. And so it goes...

Back from Australia...

During my two-week vacation trip to Australia, which I blogged about in the Honolulu Star-Advertiser (click for link) and my Career Changers TV-related site, Squashed Gecko, I received two emails that show beach access is still a confusing problem in Hawaii.

The first email came from June Watanabe, the long-time Kokua Line columnist for the daily newspaper here:

Someone sent me a question about beach access, as follows: Is there a way to find a map or list of all the beach access sites on Oahu or at least the North Shore?  I recently was going to check out a fishing site I've been to a couple of years ago and found that the path I used before was blocked and had a sign that basically said that it was private property and not to trespass.  This path is in between two homes with fences on each side; so, I found it hard to believe that it was not a public beach access point especially since there weren't any access points due to all the homes on this street.

I've asked the city Department of Planning and Permitting if it has anything but haven't yet gotten a response. However, I recall someone saying a few years ago that there was no such map or information.

The answer is yes, there has to be a list because the city/county unveiled a 911 emergency locator sign system a couple of years ago that was linked to the 80-some public beach rights of way on Oahu. Each sign was posted near the access with an assigned number. I'm also sure the Dept. of Land and Natural Resources has a map of the public accesses as well.

However, June tried contacting both the county and state to get the official info from them... and all she got was a runaround. A month later, she's still waiting for answers. Welcome to the world of government bureaucracy and inefficiency! I've said repeatedly the main problem is the split jurisdiction of shoreline management between the state and the counties, which uses the high water mark (or vegetation line -- it's confusing) as the line of demarcation. So neither takes responsibility for providing info to the public on things like beach access.

I also suggested June contact NOAA because I knew they have been working on a project to survey and catalog the public shoreline access points throughout Oahu. Ostensibly, it was meant to be a tool for fishermen and boaters, I believe. But they soon realized that others could benefit from their project since no such map was readily available to the general public. June says NOAA is nearing completion and will let us know when that survey and map are posted online.

As to the reader's question about the path being between two homes with fences on both sides and no other access points on that street... well, THAT is the problem throughout the islands! What he encountered is hardly new or unusual. Usually, that strip is an easement on "private" property owned by an association or the people who are flanking that piece of land. It can even connect with a public street and still be considered "private" property.

The other email I received while I was Down Under came from Scott Werny, former co-chair of the Oahu Surfrider Foundation, who was instrumental in launching Beach Access Hawaii as well. He forwarded this message and asked if I could clarify the situation:

Aloha,
This morning my family and I were told to move from the area of the beach by a Turtle Bay employee.  He claimed it was "the law" and when asked if it was a public beach, he stated only to the water mark.  I escalated the issue to clarify where the water mark was & where the public beach began. So far the water line is vague.  It would seem logical that if Turtle Bay makes people move, they should clearly point to where the public area is.

Reviewing the Hawaii Supreme Court 2006 decision, it appears the vegetation line (more mauka) is preferred over competing debris line.  This point was not acknowledged, and a 2001 date was referred to by the security director.  2001 predates the 2006 decision, and would be void.

All I'm really trying to determine is where the public has a right to be without being hassled.  Would you know who I should contact?

Sincerely,
Jeanne Roberts

First, it really sucks a Turtle Bay Resort employee would ask them to leave unless they were bothering someone. Not good PR. Technically, he was wrong anyway. It's not the visible water mark, as far as I know. It's based on the high water line I believe. Regardless, the bottom line is Hawaii's beaches are open to the public... however, he could have challenged them on access to that beach if they had to cross private property to reach it.

My advice to Jeanne and others in the North Shore area who encounter this kind of attitude at Turtle Bay is to tell others of their negative experiences at the resort, and spread negative publicity about the Turtle Bay Resort. Hurt them in the wallet and they might try to be a little nicer to local folks!

On the 12th Day of Gate-Mas...

One street in Kailua opened their gate to neighbors and visitors. State Rep. Cynthia Thielen, who lives on a "private" beachside lane that has a gate on its beach path, talked it over with other residents on that block and decided to leave it unlocked. Mind you, Cynthia is no bleeding heart liberal. She's a lifelong Republican and staunch conservative on private property issues. But she also believes in the spirit of aloha -- and she agrees that the beaches of Hawaii belong to everyone.

After they unlocked the gate, I heard from a Beach Access Hawaii member that a resident on that lane saw visitors walking back from the beach... and actually invited those strangers into their home. The folks who live on Rep. Thielen's street not only opened the gate. They opened their hearts.

Mele Kalikimaka!

On the 11th Day of Gate-Mas...

Pictured above is the infamous Green Monster that was put up on L'Orange Place in Kailua a little over four years ago. Only one couple on that block opposed it: Bob and Trudy Moncrief, who are on the left side of the photo. Sadly, Bob passed away last year while that gate remained locked, keeping out neighbors, fishermen and visitors. He said it went against the spirit of aloha, and for speaking out publicly against the gate, the Moncriefs were ostracized by the other L'Orange homeowners (some are mainland people who care little about Hawaii's customs or traditions).

The silver lining though was it brought Kailua residents together. On the night of the first Neighborhood Board meeting at which the L'Orange gate was discussed, Bob stood up and said he lived on that street... and he was adamantly against it. Before he sat down, someone asked me to get a list of names and email addresses so we could organize our own meeting. There were eleven of us that signed up that night.

Within a couple of months, our list grew to over two hundred and Beach Access Hawaii was born. From there we went on to form a statewide coalition that now includes thousands of supporters for our cause. Although the gate at L'Orange is still there, Bob and Trudy Moncrief continue to serve as inspiration for others who are fighting to protect public beach access throughout the islands.

Mele Kalikimaka, Bob! We miss you.

On the Tenth Day of Gate-mas...

We found that owners of beachfront homes in Hawaii were purposely growing out naupaka and other vegetation to block access along shorelines and keep the public away from those areas. In 2009, thanks in part to our lobbying efforts, new legislation was passed to impose fines on property owners (see below for article in today's Honolulu Star-Advertiser about notices being sent to Kahala homeowners).

Below is a photo of someone in Kailua using sprinklers to grow out naupaka -- which is also a way for them to claim more beach land as their own property since the vegetation line is used as a boundary. You can see the sprinkler head in the middle of the picture.

And here's the article that ran in today's newspaper...

State coastal enforcement officials are cracking down on beachfront homeowners whose property landscapes encroach on public rights of way in Kahala and elsewhere. The state mailed notices this month to nine Kahala beachfront property owners, asking them to cut their vegetation within 21 days or face a fine of $1,000.

The homes are between Kahala Beach Park and the Hunakai Street public beach access lane. The fines could rise to $2,000 on a second notice and also be taken for further action to the state Board of Land and Natural Resources if the landowners fail to comply.

State officials said civil fines could be as high as $15,000, plus other costs including restoration. The public shoreline right of way is generally defined as extending seaward from a beach's high water mark, allowing people to walk along the shoreline.

A problem occurs when a property owner cultivates vegetation to encroach into the right of way. "Maintaining public access along the shoreline is important, and fortunately a law is in place to ensure the beaches are kept free of encroaching vegetation from coastal properties that block the public right of way," said William Aila Jr., director of the state Department of Land and Natural Resources.

Scotty Anderson, chairman of the Waialae-Kahala Neighborhood Board, has said that some landowners have grown vegetation so that plants extend into the public right of way. Kimberly Mills, staff planner with the state Office of Conservation and Coastal Lands, said the state has mailed similar notices this year to property owners in Portlock and Paiko Lagoon and to six property owners along Diamond Head, and that all have complied with the notices.

Mills said of the nine properties in Kahala, one has been cleared of encroaching vegetation, while representatives of the remaining eight have asked for extensions and indicated they will comply. Mills said the Kahala property owners have until Jan. 31 to comply. The reaction has been different from in 2008, when some landowners in Kahala did not comply with the state's requests, Mills said.

Legislators passed a law in 2009 reaffirming the state's authority to enforce the maintenance of "beach transit corridors" by prohibiting vegetation. Mills said state officials had to develop a civil resource violation system before they could move forward using the 2009 law.

On the NInth Day of Gate-mas...

More than nine different organizations joined the Groundhog Day 2008 statewide rally for beach access: Surfrider (Oahu and Maui), KAHEA, Windward Ahupua'a Alliance, Hawaii Kai Hui, BEACH, Defend Oahu Coalition, Save Our Kakaako, Friends of Kewalo Basin and Beach Access Hawaii.

On the Eighth Day of Gate-mas...

The Hawaii beach access movement spread from Kailua to more than eight different locations on Groundhog Day in 2008: the State Capitol, Kakaako, Ala Moana Bowls, East Oahu, Kailua, North Shore, the Big Island, and Maui... there was even a Surfrider rally in South Florida that was inspired by our G-Day event!

On the Seventh Day of Gate-mas...

Seven sign-wavers (plus a few more) at an East Oahu rally awhile back. Keep the faith!

On the Sixth Day of Gate-mas...

Our Kailua neighbors posted security guards to keep people off their "private" beach-side lanes, which they must do at least once a year for 24 hours to show the road isn't open to the public. Yet these same people make use of PUBLIC services such as trash pick-up and mail delivery on these very same roads. Odd how a road can be public and private at the same time, huh?

On the Fifth Day of Gate-mas...

More KEEP OUT signs: