WHEREAS, for years the State has had an increase in demand for quality berthing and moorage space at both public small boat harbors and private marinas throughout the state; and

WHEREAS, in 1990, the Department of Transportation (DOT) completed the final environmental impact statement for the Keehi Lagoon Recreation Plan (Plan), with the Governor's acceptance, which proposed a significant increase in the number of needed recreational and commercial boating berths; and

WHEREAS, the development objectives for Keehi Lagoon proposed the use of private funds to implement the recommendations of the Plan by leasing unimproved and unused areas to a private developer and generating lease rent revenues for the State; and

WHEREAS, over the last 21 years, the State has continued to encourage the private sector to develop marina facilities to help meet the demand for berthing space, but due to the prolonged and costly process for obtaining necessary county, state, and federal permits and approvals and the resulting lack of available capital financing, only Ko Olina Marina has been completed and is in operation; and

WHEREAS, the Department of Land and Natural Resources (DLNR) is actively exploring various alternatives to improve and redevelop state boating facilities without relying on state resources, including participation by the private sector; and

WHEREAS, public boating funds are and will continue to be insufficient to meet the increasing backlog and demand for boating facilities, and general funds are not available for this purpose during this period of limited revenues; and

WHEREAS, private companies continue to express an interest in developing boating and ocean recreation facilities in unutilized areas of Keehi Lagoon and, in the absence of state resources, private funding is the only means for Keehi Lagoon to achieve its potential; now, therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Twenty-third Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2005, the Senate concurring, that the Board of Land and Natural Resources (BLNR) is requested to meet with all stakeholders and registered users of Keehi Lagoon, including the Office of Hawaiian Affairs and canoe-paddling clubs, to review and update the Plan and, in particular, to discuss the feasibility and means by which unutilized and underutilized areas of Keehi Lagoon may be used productively; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislature reaffirms the provisions of H.C.R. No. 68, H.D. 1, which was adopted by the 2003 Legislature to address the same issue, as well as the efforts initiated by DLNR to begin development of the unutilized portions of Keehi Lagoon; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that BLNR is requested to explore the leasing of unutilized fast and submerged lands, excluding those areas within the State's Keehi Small Boat Harbor or those currently used by canoe paddlers, for private development of boating and ocean recreational facilities; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that BLNR shall not use this Concurrent Resolution to satisfy the requirements of obtaining legislative approval for the leasing of submerged lands and lands beneath tidal waters under the terms, conditions, and restrictions provided in section 171-53 (c), Hawaii Revised Statutes; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Governor is requested to consider transferring the jurisdiction of lands in or around Keehi Lagoon from DOT to DLNR should any of those fast and submerged lands be identified as land suitable for the development of small boat and ocean recreational facilities; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that BLNR is requested to report its findings and recommendations to the Legislature no later than 20 days prior to the convening of the 2006 Regular Session; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Concurrent Resolution be transmitted to the Governor, Director of Transportation, Trustees of the Office of Hawaiian Affairs, and Chairperson of the Board of Land and Natural Resources, who is requested, in turn, to transmit copies to all listed lessees, licensees, and other registered users of Keehi Lagoon.

Report Title:

Keehi Lagoon Lands