Pacific Historic Parks, a nonprofit cooperative association of the National Park Service since 1979, is soliciting feedback from the local community via surveys and meetings scheduled now through Oct. 4 to improve its visitor access and preserve the historically significant sites on Ford Island.
These NPS-managed sites on Ford Island at Pearl Harbor National Memorial — which include six Chief Petty Officer’s bungalows and the USS Oklahoma and USS Utah memorials — commemorate the Dec. 7, 1941, attack on Pearl Harbor, which led to the U.S. entering World War II.
Pearl Harbor National Memorial Superintendent Tom Leatherman wrote in the introduction of the Ford Island National Park Service Sites Management Plan, “Your engagement is vital as we plan the future of these significant memorials and nationally important places in American World War II history. We have developed preliminary concepts for the Ford Island sites and are interested in your perspectives.”
Leatherman told Aloha State Daily by email that “this is the first real opportunity for the public to provide their thoughts on how the Ford Island sites should be managed.”
“In terms of what is up for discussion, we hope that the public will provide information about what they see as the best uses for the bungalows and how they might help to tell the story of WWII in Pearl Harbor,” he said. “We do have laws, policies and guidelines which provide some sidebars are what we can do, but for the most part we are looking for all ideas. We won't, for instance, propose building anything that is not compatible with the historic landscape of the area.”
NPS will host an in-person open house from 4 to 6 p.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 16, at Pearl Harbor National Memorial, as well as virtual sessions from 10 to 11 a.m. and 5 to 6 p.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 17. More information and Microsoft Teams meeting links can be found here.
Public comments can also be submitted through Oct. 4 at the Planning, Environment and Public Comment website, or by mail to:
Pearl Harbor National Memorial
Attn: Superintendent
1 Arizona Memorial Place
Honolulu, HI 96818
“A management plan is needed to determine how the buildings will be used and preserved," Leatherman told ASD. The cost will be determined once we have an idea of how the buildings will be used. “Some of the costs will come from the National Park Service, but we will also be working with the Navy and our nonprofit partner, Pacific Historic Parks, for funding some of the potential improvements."
When asked about estimated cost and completion, he noted, “It is likely to also occur in phases, so we wouldn't need all of the money to move forward on making improvements.”
According to the proposed planning timeline, NPS aims to firm up the plan with public input and conduct environmental compliance by fall of next year, and close out the final plan by spring of 2027.
“Pacific Historic Parks is proud to support this effort to engage the community in planning for these historically significant places,” said the nonprofit’s President and CEO Aileen Utterdyke in a statement. “The stories of Pearl Harbor continue to inspire and teach, and it’s important that these sites are preserved with care and input from the public.”
To view the Ford Island National Park Service Sites Management Plan, click here.
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Kelsey Kukaua Medeiros can be reached at kelsey@alohastatedaily.com.
