New Yacht Basin at Ala Wai Yacht Harbor

"Great news for boat owners," writes Capt. Mahalo of Upper Malele Heights on Oahu, "as the legislators have finally seen the light and have not only undertaken full scale repair of the entire Ala Wai Yacht Harbor but, as you can see from the accompanying photo, are adding an additional basin near the Hilton Hawaiian Village to meet the tremendous demand for slips."

In our dreams. The truth of the matter is that the Hilton Hawaiian Village folks have seen fit to invest something like $15 million to make their oceanfront lagoon next to the Ala Wai a first-class attraction. If only the legislators in the State of Hawaii had the foresight and economic smarts to realize that investments – particularly in yacht harbor monopolies such as theirs – pay off big. If they would only allow some private company to invest $15 million, or whatever, and manage the 600+ berth Ala Wai, the payoff for boatowners, friends of the ocean, taxpayers and the state would be significant. But after more than 30 years of poor management, don’t expect anything to change soon.