The Waipio Soccer Complex has emerged as a top candidate for the city's next landfill, and Honolulu City Council members are questioning what the logistics will be.
It is not without its complications. For example, the field is currently used by about 30,000 soccer players on Oahu, according to the Department of Parks and Recreation website.
Any use of the land would require permission from the Navy, which currently controls the land and is planning to build a new $3.4 billion submarine dry dock at Pearl Harbor. The plan is to use it as a place to transport supplies across the country.
Nothing is set in stone yet, unless specifically authorized by the Navy. But the Waipi'o Peninsula is currently “the most promising location,” Managing Director Mike Formby said at a City Council budget committee meeting in March.
Still, questions remain about its feasibility, as was made clear during Wednesday's City Council committee hearing. Councilors wanted answers about how much it would cost to relocate a heavily used soccer field and how the landfill would withstand natural disasters.
Currently, Honolulu's only municipal landfill is located at Waimanalo Gulch near Ko Olina. That location is scheduled to close in 2028, meaning the city has limited time to find and open a new location elsewhere on Oahu.
The city planned to name the new location by the end of 2022, according to the language written on the permit.
But just before the deadline, Mayor Rick Blangiardi and Environmental Services Commissioner Roger Babcock requested an extension until the end of 2024. The Planning Commission will likely approve the request, according to a draft decision released March 1.
Finding a new location is proving difficult.
A state law passed in 2020 prohibits new landfills from being built within a half-mile radius of schools, hospitals and residences. Other restrictions include an airport buffer zone and a “no-traffic zone” above the island's drinking water aquifer.
Blangiardi said the city is negotiating with the military to use some of the land. The Waipio Peninsula remains the frontrunner, but opposition has already emerged.
Frank Doyle of the Hawaii Soccer Association, who played a major role in establishing the Waipio Soccer Complex and served as director of environmental services under Mayor Jeremy Harris, testified in opposition.
“This facility has improved our lives in so many ways,” Doyle said.
The facility has 24 regulated fields and was built in 2000 at a cost of approximately $23 million, or just over $40 million after accounting for inflation. Scott Keopuhiwa, president and executive director of the Hawaii Youth Soccer Association, testified that 200 teams from the mainland are expected to participate during the June tournament.
“Tens of millions of dollars have already been invested in the current Waipio soccer complex. Why relocate it to create a landfill or build another soccer facility where the infrastructure is already in place?” Would you consider doing that?'' he asked.
Mr Formby said one possibility would be to move the soccer facility west to Kalaeloa, where the city is also proposing to build a racetrack. But it won't be a very central location, Keopuhiwa said in an interview.
Councilors also asked questions about the site's proximity to a tsunami zone and whether a special management area permit would be required due to its proximity to the coastline.
Babcock pointed out that the land being considered is actually outside the tsunami zone. But Mr Formby said many questions still needed to be addressed.
“All of the things you're raising are legitimate questions and challenges, and issues that need to be resolved once the property is greenlit. But that hasn't been the case, so we haven't gotten that far. “I did,” Mr Formby said.
If talks with the military on the Waipi'o Peninsula are unsuccessful, the city's options include seeking private land, using prominent land to purchase existing residential land, or asking the state Legislature to amend state law. This includes asking for. Mr Formby said he had consulted several councilors about the last possibility but was “advised that it would be a very difficult process”.
If talks with the military go well, city officials will begin outreach to the community and consider next steps, including obtaining permits. Mr Formby said the entire process would likely take about eight years and would need to start in 2020 to meet Waimanalo Gulch's current closure deadline of 2028.
Space isn't really an issue — Babcock said the current site, which opened in 1989, still has room until about 2036. However, city officials have not publicly announced a decision to extend use at the current site, Formby said. Part of the reason is that they may be able to find a place to open a landfill sooner.
However, he acknowledged that the schedule will be tightened.
“Most people understand that they have to do the math and make that decision at some point. But right now they're not able to do that,” Formby said.
