The meter’s running: Possible Aliʻi Drive parking solution calls for converting part of roadway to one-way traffic

A fix for the parking issue in the Aliʻi Drive area of Kailua-Kona could be at hand. Big Island residents can learn about it this weekend from Hawaiʻi County’s top government official and provide their input.

Mayor Kimo Alameda will provide an update about a parking plan for Aliʻi Drive during the Mālama Kailua Village community event the afternoon of April 12 in Kailua-Kona.

The event from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Hale Hālāwai, located at 75-5670 Aliʻi Drive, is free to attend. Alameda will speak at noon.

Plans call for adding on-street parking by converting about 0.4 miles of Aliʻi Drive — between Kailua Pier and Hualālai Road — to a one-way street.

“The one-way conversion would act as a pilot program to address parking needs for downtown businesses,” Alameda said in an announcement. “If the project is successful, we would seek approval from the [Hawaiʻi] County Council to adopt the new traffic pattern within 90 days.”

Traffic would flow in a southbound direction, starting after the pier. Vehicles exiting the pier would have the option to turn either left or right.

“We encourage residents to join us this Saturday to provide their input on how we can improve parking and traffic flow in the business area,” Alameda said.

Parking has become a prime issue during the past few years for residents who frequent the tourist hot spot that is Kailua-Kona’s Aliʻi Drive, especially the 0.7-mile stretch from Courtyard by Marriott King Kamehameha’s Kona Beach Hotel to Coconut Grove Marketplace.

Much of the patchwork of parking along and around the main roadway along the Kailua Bay coastline was previously offered for nothing or a nominal fee of only $3 an hour in some places.

Now, you’re hard-pressed to find any free parking in the area — if at all.

Parking fees of between $9 and $15 an hour started to pop up in many Aliʻi Drive and adjacent lots more than a year ago.

The hit someone’s wallet takes to simply let their car sit while enjoying the shops, eateries, beaches and other amenities of the bay area or even work their shift at a local business on Aliʻi Drive can cost as much as the same price as a couple of drinks, an appetizer or even a small entrée — from $12 to $21 — every hour.

While some lots do provide limited amounts of free time or discounts, many locals choose to no longer come downtown because of the skyrocketing price of parking.

Diamond Parking operates four lots in the downtown Kailua-Kona area. Diamond’s city manager Jasmine Crusat told Big Island Now in November 2024 that the increase in parking rates is a direct result of the rising cost of doing business.

It’s a supply-and-demand issue, with more demand for parking now than available spots, leading to people parking in lots and not patronizing their connected businesses.

Derek Proudian has invested since 2013 in a property originally occupied by Daylight Mind restaurant on Waterfront Row on Ali‘i Drive’s Waterfront Row.

The 66-year-old assumed the lease in October 2019 after the restaurant went bankrupt and rebranded it as Papa Kona Restaurant and Bar.

Proudian told Big Island Now in November 2024 that the transition to paid parking has made it a challenge for his employees to get to work.

Papa Kona employees are carpooling and parking at the old Safeway, above Walmart on Henry Street, and walking about a mile down to the restaurant.

The business also relies on local residents for much of its business during shoulder seasons, from the second half of April to the end of June and again in September until the first half of November, outside peak tourism season.

His restaurant was down about 30% in revenue during the second shoulder season of 2024.

“The boutique shops are being hurt the most,” Proudian said at the time. “No one wants to do window shopping with the meter running.”

He warned then that if a reasonable solution isn’t found, “Kona town is going to turn into a ghost town.”

News reporter Nathan Christophel contributed to this story.