Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 9, Number 7, 1 July 1992 — H-3 and preservation vs. development from page1 [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

H-3 and preservation vs. development from page1

(DOT) and Federal Highways Administration have indicated a willingness to re-route again to save Site 75. The reconciliation of development and preservation should be looked at on a case-by-case basis, Delaney said. "Don't make the decision pivot on the sacred character of the site." Such sites as eanoe houses and hula platforms, not just heiau, "are all deserving of our respect and love." Just how should cultural sites be looked at? Delaney says, "I'd like to see a lot more Hawaiians get trained in archeology and [the] social sciences." She added that their cultural sensitivity might rub off on others in the field. Though in an ideal world it would be niee to save every site, to most people it is clear that development is a necessary part of life. Total preservation may not be possible, because the community needs schools; it needs homes; it needs jobs. So when asked whether development and native Hawaiian concerns ean be reconciled, Delaney replied, "They have to be." She went on to say that OHA should find a role in reaching "a compromise — and I don't think compromise is a bad word — to allow the

past and the future to live together, both enriched by the experience." Formerly, other agencies often either misunderstood or ignored the legal and cultural basis of authority inherent in OHA's role. But as the lead agency for Hawaiian concerns, whieh include historic and cultural preservation, OHA has been gaining recognition from other governmental bodies in regard to historic matters. The Office of Hawaiian Affairs was brought into the fold in 1987 when, after filing suit, it became party to the Section 106 process and a concurring party to the H-3 Memorandum of Agreement (MOA). Current federal law, however, does not require OHA or other Hawaiian organizations be consulted or invited to sign. Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act requires that federal agencies, like the Federal Highways Administration, take into account what effects their undertakings, such as freeway construction, have on historic properties. Other parties to the MOA include the Federal Highways Administration, the State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO), the federal Advisory Council on Historic Preservation, and the state DOT.

Rex Johnson, DOT director, has publicly stated that his department "is not in the business of interpreting archeological or cultural information" and that it depends on the Department of Land and Natural Resources (of whieh SHPO is a part), the Advisory Council and OHA to provide advice "on the significance of the findings and what we should do about them." Delaney said she does not believe the Section 106 process provides adequately for, native Hawaiian concerns, but she does feel it provides "an open door." The growing awareness of Hawaiian views is, to her, itself progress for preservation. Why is H-3 being built? Sen. Daniel Inouye is frequently cited as the main supporter of the freeway and the primary advocate for its construction. Nestor Garcia, spokesperson for the senator, acknowledged that Inouye's motivation for seeing H-3 built was, in addition to relieving traffic congestion, to provide a direct link between Kane'ohe Marine Corps Air Station and Pearl Harbor. The nation's interstate highway system was meant to connect military bases, and that was one t>f the reasons for building H-1 and H-2, he said. Although the U.S. victory in the Cold War i" 1 . mimmmmmmaĒmmmmum

may cause some to question whether the nahonal defense argument still holds, Garcia said, critics need only review history and remember how many times people have said our nation could divert attention away from defense only to be faced with new crises, from the Korean conflict to the Persian Gulf war. "1 don't think anyone could say for a second we could relax our concerns over defense," he said. "It's still a dangerous world out there." Native Hawaiian concerns ean still be addressed, Garcia assured. "The Senator has gone on record as saying he will do what he ean to support funding to re-route the freeway (within the valley).... You ean expect him to lead the fight for more funding so the heiau [Hale O Papa] ean be preserved." Garcia said one of the things Inouye likes to point out about Hawai'i is that, here, development and preservation are able to co-exist. He cited the reinterment of ancient Hawaiian burials excavated during the development of the Ritz-Carlton Hotel at Honokahua, Maui as an example. According to Garcia, lnouye is fond of saying, "In Hawai'i, we talk things out and we settle it

before the courts have to get involved." Actually, there is a national trend among native peoples to have a voice when progress and preservation collide. Despite Inouye's views, some people say the co-existence in Hawai'i has not always been easy. Several cases have wound up in court, and after 20 years, there is still considerable animosity over H-3. "This freeway is being built on false pretenses," said Patricia Cummings, an attorney retained by the Halawa Coalition, at a June 11 press conference. Members of the Halawa Coalition have stated in public meetings and hearings that they believe the entire valley is sacred and should be preserved, and that realignment is not enough. The issue of development versus preservation also presents considerable difficulty because of its eeonomie impact. When asked about labor's view on how to reconeile preservation and development, Walter Kupau said his sole eoneem is lobbying for as mueh work as he ean get for his members. "It's a selfish motive," he said, "but people gotta eat and they gotta pay rent." No Hawaiian workers have demonstrated at union headquarters or raised any concerns regarding H-3 at his office or in meetings, Kupau added. Kupau said he is unable to estimate how many carpenters' jobs were generated by the highway construction, because the scope of the project, when combined with related projects, is so enormous. For instance, Aloha Stadium was constructed at Halawa with H-3 in mind, he said, and the Stadium Mall and future development at both ends of the highway would also have to be added in.

"Mass transit may ruin a few places, too, but you can't stop progress," Kupau said, but even he believes that eoneem over the sites is "something that should be looked at." And in the past when the state has looked at significant sites in the path of H-3, said Rep. Reb Bellinger (District 15, La'ie, Kahalu'u), it has been very sensitive and very cooperative in modifying the highway project on both sides of the Ko'olau. But while the sites need to be studied and then ranked according to their signifieanee for possible preservation, he believes "there is also a responsibility for today." Before he became a member of the state Legislature, Bellinger was president of Citizens for H-3, a coalition of citizens, the business community and the unions whieh organized in 1984 around a pro-H-3 stance. The group lobbied in Washington, collected 35,000 signatures in a petition drive and sent about 15,000 letters to Congress. Bellinger said the group formed because the public seemed to favor H-3 and a response needed to be made to the various groups opposing H-3. There is a need for both development and preservation, Bellinger said, and "sometimes there has to be a very sensitive balance between them." Fortunately, Bellinger said, the state ean utilize the wisdom that comes with experience. "We ean take an awful lot of the lessons we've learned ... so some of the mistakes made in the planning of O'ahu aren't transferred to the Neighbor Islands." Other possible solutions mentioned by OHA's Delaney include a complete statewide inventory of archeological and cultural sites, and puhlie funding of archeological work.

Uneasy co-existence of the historic and modern: access road in Halawa valley.