Edan Mabon remembers what the keiki pond used to look like at Ahalanui Beach Park.
Children bobbed around with their cute little floaties.
The keiki pond wasn’t perfect, but at least it was open.
“It was a little bit rocky,” Mabon said. “It was nice that it was shallow. But it was a little bit dangerous for your feet.”
Mayor Harry Kim said county Parks and Recreation plans to refurbish the kiddie pond, one of two interconnected geothermal ponds at Ahalanui.
Kim said maintenance crews assessed repair needs after the pond was damaged in summer 2015. Large ocean swells forced the pond’s closure when waves took a slab of cement nearby and tossed pieces of it into the water, along with volcanic rocks.
Ahalanui is a county priority, Kim said, because it’s one of only two places for kids in the region to swim. The other, Pohoiki boat ramp, was not designed for swimmer safety.
“I’m very concerned about Pohoiki, about the safety of kids,” Kim said. With kids swimming at the boat ramp, he said, “that tells you we have to put a high priority on Ahalanui.”
Kim asked Parks and Recreation why repairs haven’t happened. Kim was told by maintenance staff that heavy equipment is needed and repairs were put on a to-do list by front-line maintenance personnel but were never sent up the chain of command for permission.
Instead, the repairs essentially sat on the to-do list until the Tribune-Herald reached out to Kim, who wasn’t aware of the keiki pond’s current condition.
Now, “they’re trying to decide what they can and can’t do because it is a big job,” Kim said.
Edan and Nui Mabon said they will take their son, Haile, 2, to the keiki pond if it reopens, especially if the rocks get removed.
“I would love it,” Nui Mabon said.
The keiki pond gets about 2 1/2 feet deep, whereas the main pool nearby can be 7 or 8 feet during the summer.
“The last time we were here, this was deep,” Edan Mabon said.
Children and nonswimmers used to be sent to the keiki pond by lifeguards. But, these days, there’s only one pond at Ahalanui. The water drains into the ocean at low tide and refills with new water as the tide swells.
Tuesday, about 40 people, including the Mabons, were in the main pond. About 50 or so more people strolled near the pond or watched from the banks.
About 1,100 people visit the park daily during open weekday hours (7 a.m.-7 p.m.) and about 1,500 daily on weekends, park statistics show.
Park visitors were hopeful Tuesday that the keiki pond will be repaired and reopened.
“I think it’s worth it just because it’s one of the treasures of the Big Island,” Edan Mabon said. “So many visitors come to visit. They’ve got tours coming down.”
Ryan Diero of Eugene, Ore., swam Tuesday with his spouse and two children.
He said his 4-year-old daughter surprised him because she was reticent to swim at first but became more comfortable by using floaters. The family was visiting for a wedding along with another couple and their three children.
Diero wasn’t aware there used to be a special area for kids at the Ahalanui tidepool when planning the family’s trip.
“If I knew that was there, that would have been more intriguing to me,” he said.
Kim said he hasn’t been to Ahalanui himself lately, but he requested photos of the damage. He’s not sure how long repairs will take.
“We will see what can be done, and we will do that,” Kim said.
Email Jeff Hansel at jhansel@hawaiitribune-herald.com.
