Waipio Soccer Complex out as possible site of Oahu landfill

HONOLULU — Hawaii’s soccer community breathed a collective sigh of relief Tuesday morning when the City and County of Honolulu announced it would no longer consider the Waipio soccer complex as the site of a new landfill on Oahu.

Officials with the Navy, which controls land on the Waipio Peninsula, recently informed Mayor Rick Blangiardi that he was “unable to support landfill development on this property,” according to a city news release.

“From the moment I got the news, I had the biggest smile on my face all day,” Scott Keopuhiwa, president and CEO of the Hawaii Youth Soccer Association, told Spectrum News in a phone interview. “We are very happy that they will no longer consider using Waipio as a landfill.”

Fears in the football community were high given the central position of the sport in the islands for the past two decades He was named in March as a leading candidate It will replace the Waimanalo Gulch landfill, which is scheduled to close in 2028.

The sprawling Waipio Soccer Complex features 21 fields on 288 acres, including the 4,500-seat Waipio Peninsula Soccer Stadium where the University of Hawaii and junior colleges play. High school and club teams compete for championships there.

Kyopohiwa and others first concluded that turning it into a landfill was being seriously considered about a year ago. He said he considers Waipio a “second home” for organizing events for HYSA’s approximately 7,500 members on a weekly basis. For HYSA and other organizations, it is seen as an ideal location for league games, tournaments, camps and clinics.

The city has floated the idea of ​​building a new soccer complex, likely on West Oahu.

“As time went on, and it became more apparent — right after the mayor’s State of the City address, where they said Waipio was a prime candidate to become a landfill — that’s when we were really shocked that we had come this far,” he said. “I think this one caught our attention the most.”

A Change.org petition started by Hawaii Soccer Federation President Sergio Polioli to keep Waipio as it is has garnered more than 21,000 signatures as of Tuesday afternoon.

“This is not about one team, one league, or one association. This is about the entire soccer community statewide,” Bolioli wrote. “The negative impact this will have on tens of thousands of players, coaches, referees, and spectators is beyond anyone’s imagination.

“The Waipio Soccer Complex has been the heart and soul of soccer in Hawaii for the past 24 years. It has helped produce national championship teams and nurtured numerous professional players. Every week, thousands of children and adults use this park along with the island teams Neighboring, mainland and international.

The city estimates that about 30,000 soccer players regularly use the space.

University of Hawaii football coach Michel Nagamine told Spectrum News that the new football complex on West Oahu will put an additional burden on families who used to make sacrifices to move to the west-central Waipio location.

“I think the soccer community, including my team, is breathing a sigh of relief,” Nagamine said. “I don’t mean to sound overly dramatic, but I think it could have really negatively impacted the youth soccer market in Hawaii.

“I’m so happy that the football community has been able to come together and let their voices be heard.”

Her team will play the entire 2024 season at Waipio, and potential night games for future seasons, while the new on-campus soccer field is still under construction. After some delays, it is now scheduled to be completed in January 2025, Nagamine said.

Before Waipio opened in September 2000, the closest place in Hawaii to a soccer center was Kapiolani Park, but that was very different, as there were a maximum of six fields for simultaneous play, Kiopoheiwa said. He was on a task force for then-Mayor Jeremy Harris’ administration to get Waipio off the ground.

Kyopohia and others have attended City Council committee meetings and provided testimony to the state Legislature in recent months.

He said he was “shocked and pleasantly surprised” that the Navy would issue its decision so early in the process, but he is grateful. If not, he’s ready to keep fighting.

Admiral John C. signed Aquilino, commander of US Indo-Pacific Command, called the Navy’s decision due to “nearshore waters” and “critical maritime operations and training activities in the vicinity of the Waipio Peninsula.”

The city, according to its statement, has already eliminated a site in Waianae on federal land, and the Army has ruled out an option near Bellows Air Force Base in Waimanalo.

The city has indicated it could seek an amendment to reduce the “buffer distance” of the new landfill to make more sites available.

Brian MacInnis He covers the state’s sports scene for Spectrum News Hawaii. It can be reached at brian.mcinnis@charter.com.