A room set aside for welcoming cruise ship passengers at Hilo Harbor will be turned into a security office, frustrating greeters who have waited four years to return to the space.
The area, known as the “Aloha Room,” was closed for renovations in 2012 as the terminal building at Pier 1 underwent a $5 million upgrade.
Volunteers with Destination Hilo, who greet passengers and have provided brochures, have since been located under an awning near a taxi staging area. They say they were told they could return to the room by 2013, though permitting issues have kept it and adjacent bathrooms from being cleared for occupancy.
But, despite the long wait, Destination Hilo President Dinnie Kysar said they won’t be allowed to return since the space is being claimed for a new security office. She told members in an email last month that she expected volunteers to be disappointed.
“They have weathered four years outside in the expectation that any day we could be back in our Aloha Room space,” she wrote. “This space is cool, provides a place for passengers to rest, and find welcoming local volunteers to help them.”
Additionally, Kysar said they won’t be allowed to continue distributing brochures since they promote paying members.
“We can talk about them. We just can’t put their cards out,” she told the Tribune-Herald. “We can’t advertise, we can’t promote.”
Kysar said the room was nice for passengers since it provided a place to sit and had televisions displaying East Hawaii attractions.
Darrell Young, harbors division deputy director, said the department will allow Destination Hilo to use a space inside the terminal building, which passengers walk through, for their greeting table. But another Aloha Room, along with its amenities, is unlikely.
“It’s a matter of funding,” he said.
Young said DOT allowed Destination Hilo to use the former Aloha Room, but they did not have a written agreement or permit.
“It’s all informal,” he said. “I think it had to do with the spirit of aloha and spirit of Hawaii Island.”
Young said the current security office doesn’t meet Coast Guard requirements since it’s not in proximity to the dock and passengers.
“We’d have to construct it,” he said, regarding finding another room. “We’re trying to meet the security plan with the space we have available.”
Young said the brochures are an issue since they conflict with the harbors division’s rules on solicitation.
“It’s something that has been overlooked,” he said.
“We recognize the value that they bring,” Young later added, regarding the volunteers. “We want to make sure we’re not creating more problems.”
Kysar said that restriction will significantly limit what they can do for passengers.
Simply moving back into the open terminal building also isn’t ideal, but she said they will try to make the best of it.
“We’re in there for the long run and I appreciate what harbors has done in the past,” Kysar said.
But she said the terminal building still needs better seating.
“Passengers have a long walk and they need a place to sit,” she said.
Even if the Aloha Room is used as a security office, it’s not clear when that would occur since it has yet to be cleared for occupancy.
The pier is technically exempt from Hawaii County oversight, but DOT has sought to get the county’s building division to sign off on it after the work was finished.
Young said he couldn’t estimate when that review will be complete.
Email Tom Callis at tcallis@hawaiitribune-herald.com.
