Parklets are the new thing in downtown Honolulu

There are new sidewalk additions in Kakaako and they may be showing up elsewhere in downtown. Its a feature that has shown up in a number of urban settings on the mainland.

These gazebos are cute cute enough to be called parklets. Its the citys first venture into reclaiming more space for pedestrians in downtown Honolulu.

These two parklets happen to be in front of Hanks Haute Dogs on Coral Street in Kakaako.

What parklets do is that, essentially, it extends the people zone into the street, and thats an important thing, and it does that to activate the street, said George Atta, director of the citys Department of Planning and Permitting.

Its all part of an overall urban plan to make downtown more livable for residents.

With the rail coming through, they are part of our transit-oriented development, Atta said.

The parklets are a cooperative effort among Kamehameha Schools, Honolulu and private merchants.

This was a long conversation both with our merchants here, with government, and within our own organization, said Kekoa Paulson of Kamehameha Schools. This is new as far as the kinds of things Kamehameha Schools does, so partnership is key. Its important that whoever is being touched by it has a voice in it.

The idea is not novel it has been used successfully in San Francisco and Chicago.

The idea is to have these structures be a part of the community and the sidewalk and enhance the overall pedestrian experience throughout Kakaako, said architect Scott Harada.

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Parklets are the new thing in downtown Honolulu