It was described by many dog owners as a happy place.
Kawai Nui Neighborhood Park, known to most as Kaha Park in Kailua, once was a place where some 25 to 30 or more dogs would gather in the large, mostly unkempt, grassy field in the evenings, while youth soccer teams, lacrosse teams and others used it for practice and games earlier in the day.
For many years, Kaha Park was a de facto, off-leash dog park that seemingly co-existed peacefully with other uses, until police pulled up one March evening, and handed out more than a dozen citations for violating park rules. At the time, “No Dogs Allowed” signs were posted at the park.
Police said at a Kailua Neighborhood Board meeting on April 4 that they were responding to community complaints about the dogs. This summer, with no games scheduled, and dogs dispersed, the grassy field remains mostly empty.
This scenario at Kaha Park is an example of the ongoing tug-of-war over the fair sharing of a limited number of public parks across the island.
Youth sports teams say they are struggling to find available fields for their practices and games, while dog owners — knowingly or unknowingly — are ending up at de facto parks because they have nowhere else to bring their four-legged friends to play.
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Officials, meanwhile, are aiming to strike a balance on how taxpayer-funded parks are to be fairly shared among all users, including those with dogs.
The city Department of Parks and Recreation (DPR) in April announced a “comprehensive change” to improve access for responsible dog owners and leashed dogs.
According to DPR, fewer than 15% of Oahu’s 308 city parks are legally accessible to pet dogs and their families for recreation. The dearth of parks is particularly noticeable on the leeward, windward and north sides of Oahu.
Even in Honolulu, where most dog parks are concentrated, some of the most popular ones, including Ala Moana and Kapi‘olani parks, do not allow dogs.
The DPR director has authority to designate areas in public parks for use by people with dogs on-leash or for use as off-leash dog parks but wants community input first.
The department requested neighborhood boards, including the one in Kailua, provide input on where these dog-friendly privileges should or should not be, along with their concerns this summer.
DPR is open to considering both on- and off-leash parks, said DPR spokesman Nate Serota, but Ala Moana is not being considered at this time. The process of establishing an on-leash park is quicker, he said, whereas an off-leash park would take more time due to infrastructure needs such as fencing and access to fresh water.
DPR also is working to bring Kaha Park back into balance for all users.
Kaha Park was a place of joy and community, according to those who frequented the unofficial dog park, some for just a year, and others for as many as 20 years or more. It was a grassroots gathering that sprung up as dog owners of all ages — young and old — discovered it, without necessarily knowing they were scofflaws.
It turns out that the “No Dogs Allowed” sign at the park was posted in error — and the citations police issued have been dismissed, according to DPR. A new sign replaced it in May that now says, “Leashed Dogs Allowed.”
“The ‘No Dogs’ sign was a mistake that has been corrected,” said Serota in an email. “Our records indicate the park has been a leashed dog park since 2017, and the current signage reflects that privilege. We apologize to the community for the confusion.”
After many dog owners spoke up about the situation at the Kailua Neighborhood Board, its park committee reached out to the city to facilitate a solution.
DPR agreed to consider establishing part of it as an off-leash dog park, and is getting cost estimates for a fence around the back of the park, Serota said, but has no timeline yet.
Pro-dog stance
Many dog owners welcome the possibility of establishing an off-leash dog park at Kaha as a compromise. Some had suggested setting specific hours for sports, and others for dogs, but officials said it would be too difficult to enforce.
Some dog owners have visited the new dog park, Kahua o Waikalua in Kaneohe, the windward side’s only off-leash park, which opened in December after more than 10 years of efforts, but they say it’s not the same.
The opening of that park was a monumental task, which required extensive fundraising by the nonprofit Windward Dog Park Hui, establishing a public-access easement and realignment of Bay View Golf Courses’ seventh hole.
An off-leash dog park — first announced in 2018 — is still in the works off Hamakua Drive in Kailua, according to state Sen. Chris Lee.
Alexander & Baldwin is donating an 8-acre parcel of land alongside Hamakua Marsh to build a new dog park and wetland viewing area in Kailua. The dog park, if it comes to fruition, eventually would be transferred to the city to manage as an off-leash dog park.
But another 10-year wait, some said, would be too late for their dogs.
Karen Scarvie of Kailua, who frequented Kaha Park with her rescue dog Kiki over the past six years, is hopeful it will return to being a place where dogs can once again play and socialize.
“It’s healthy for dogs, physically and emotionally, and for humans it’s the same,” she said. “It builds community, it builds connections. It’s a public park and here we are, part of the public, part of the community.”
Surveying the empty field on a recent afternoon, Scarvie said, “It’s like people are afraid to come back, and it’s a shame.”
A place of joy
Scarvie and other dog owners remember when Kaha Park was filled with dogs of all kinds and sizes who played with one another, from small terrier mixes to poi dogs like Kiki, alongside pit bulls, goldendoodles, Australian shepherds, and golden retrievers.
The dogs sniffed and played chase, sometimes starting impromptu sessions of hopping energetically in the tall grass at the edge of the park. On rainy days, when water pooled, the Labradors and other dogs rolled around happily in the mud.
There were occasional skirmishes, but the community would step in to break it up and the unwritten rule was that the dogs involved must leave afterward.
Chad Daniels, owner of Roger and Linus the Great Danes, recalls that the beauty of Kaha was the rustic feel and varied terrain, with ample room for them to run freely.
He has found most dog parks to be too small, which has the effect of making pets feel caged in, he said.
Mary Marasovich, who has a lab mix named Hoku, had been a regular at Kaha Park for years. Her late husband, Glen Van Ingen, used to bring Hoku along with a foldout chair, where he would sit every evening, watching the dogs play and talking story.
“It was his happy place,” she said.
Van Ingen kept going until he was unable to, and died last September at the age of 91. The dog community held a celebration of life in memory of him.
Differing opinions
But expanding on- and off-leash privileges at city parks doesn’t pass the sniff test for some Oahu residents. The opposing side views dog poop as a top concern, along with safety.
A group of residents that attended a May meeting at Kaha Park said poop is a continual issue, and complained about traffic and cars parking on their properties.
Social media posts about Kaha have complained about soccer kids stepping in dog poop, along with poop piling up by the trash can, while others were concerned about dogs running around unleashed.
The Honolulu Star-Advertiser reached out to the American Youth Soccer Organization for comment on dogs, but did not hear back.
Dog owners said they were careful to pick up after their dogs at Kaha, and would point pooping dogs out to one another on the field in case someone was busy chatting or missed it.
“Everybody I saw were responsible dog owners, and they cleaned up after themselves,” said Scarvie, who added she was willing to volunteer her time to get the dog park established and help maintain it.
Serota said DPR is considering the installation of dog poop bag stations to address concerns.
The input the department has received on dog parks so far this summer, he said, has been mixed, with neighborhoods like Kuliouou and Mililani interested in expanding access, while Nuuanu and Punchbowl were not.
Margaret Murchie, who is on the Diamond Head, Kapahulu, St. Louis Neighborhood Board, said residents there want a dog park at the corner of Kapahulu and Ala Wai boulevards near the Waikiki library.
In an email shared with the Star-Advertiser, the Palolo community told its neighborhood board that it recommended leaving the limited number of recreational sports parks in its area free of dogs due to high demand, and to create more fenced areas for dogs instead.
“Recreational use of our parks by our children for their development should be a top priority and therefore, we strongly support these parks to remain dog free,” said the letter, which also cited safety and liability issues for keiki, kupuna, and residents, along with sanitation and health issues.
Serota said in an email that, “Our parks are used for an ever-increasing variety of activities, and we always strive to find a balance so one group does not feel disadvantaged to the benefit of another. Having these groups meet face-to-face tends to help, and the Neighborhood Board system is a good, democratic way for people to voice their concerns.”
He added that it’s good for groups to be part of the process, as conflicts can sometimes arise, but that “by and large, most park users are respectful of each other.”
OAHU DOG PARKS
>> 12 off-leash parks (10 city, others privately owned)*
>> 36 on-leash parks
>> 308 city parks
>> Nearly 60% of Oahu households have pets; 43% own dogs.The Honolulu Department of Parks and Recreation wants to gather input on dog park access by fall via Oahu’s neighborhood boards. Find your board at honolulu.gov/nco/boards.
*Possibly more. Does not include parks on military bases.
Source: Honolulu Department of Parks and Recreation, Hawaiian Humane Society
Honolulu’s 10 off-leash city parks*
>> Aala Dog Park
>> Ala Wai Dog Park
>> Elaine Dobashi Hawaii Kai Dog Park
>> Hoa Aloha Dog Park (Salt Lake) — Opened December 2023
>> Kahua O Waikalua Dog Park (Kaneohe) — Opened December 2024
>> Kalo Place Mini Park
>> Mililani Dog Park
>> Moanalua Dog Park
>> Mother Waldron Dog Park, Kakaako
>> Patsy Mink Central Oahu Regional Park
* Does not include Bark Park at Diamond Head (privately operated on state land) and Hawaiian Humane Society’s Schuler Family Foundation and Jones Family Community Dog Park in Ewa Beach (open to public with membership requirements).
Source: Honolulu Department of Parks and Recreation
Star-Advertiser poll results*
Should more city parks be dog-friendly, and legally allow dogs on premises?
67.8%
Yes, but only on leashes
11%
Yes, on and off leash
21.2%
No, not allowed at all
*Results from an X survey posted June 23; 118 votes total