DLNR Updates Outdoor Recreation Plan, Seeks Public Input

Every five years people have an opportunity to review and provide update suggestions to the Statewide Comprehensive Outdoor Recreation plan, or SCORP for short. The DLNR Division of State Parks (DSP) is now inviting people to review the draft of the SCORP-2021.

The plan assesses outdoor recreation trends, needs and priorities and provides direction for the recreational future allowing Hawaiʻi to remain eligible to receive federal funds for outdoor recreation projects. Funding is administered through the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF), agrants program administered by the National Park Service.

The five-year strategic plan for outdoor recreation as presented in the draft 2021 SCORP is based on comments received from recreation agencies and others through online surveys and community meetings held between April and June 2021. More than 2,600 people participated in the process.

Community members and stakeholders and recreation providers identified the protection of natural and wildlife resources and wilderness areas as top priorities for investment in outdoor recreation.  The operation and maintenance of existing infrastructure and facilities and protection of cultural and/or historic resources were found to be other top priorities for the next five years. Concerns were expressed about inadequate and poor conditions of facilities.

Continuing a theme identified in the 2015 SCORP, which was  intensified during the COVID-19 pandemic, people and providers both recognize an increasing demand for outdoor recreation spaces and associated facilities. Recreation providers rates enforcement as the most serious challenge in managing and providing outdoor recreation facilities. They also expressed a need for enough funding to adequately manage these spaces.

The 2021 SCORP will assist in selecting projects for LWCF funding.

Recent LWCF grants include:

• Renovation of tennis and basketball courts at Kalawai Park, Kauaʻi 
• Installation of new playgrounds at Kaimukī Community Park, Ala Pu‘umalu Community Park, and Kahalu‘u Community Park, O‘ahu. Construction of the Hilo Bayfront Trail, Hawai’i Island
• Coastal trail improvements at Waiʻānapanapa State Park, Maui
• New lookouts, viewing scopes and repaving of the Makapuʻu Trail at Kaiwi State Scenic Shoreline on Oʻahu. 

Comments on the plan are requested by November 19, 2021, and can be submitted by e-mail or in writing to: SCORP2021@pbrhawaii.com or to:

PBR HAWAII & Associates, Inc.

Attn: SCORP

1001 Bishop Street, Suite 650

Honolulu, HI 96813-3484