**IMPORTANT PARK NOTICES**
Monitor weather reports before your park visit!
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[KAUAʻI] – UPDATE 9/16/25: West Kauaʻi Park Units – State Parks is recruiting for a Park Maintenance Supervisor II for the West Kauaʻi Park units, including, Kokeʻe State Park, Na Pali Coast Wilderness Park, Paʻulaʻula State Historic Park, Polihale State Park, Waimea Canyon State Park, and Waimea State Recreational Pier. See position description here: https://www.governmentjobs.com/careers/hawaii/jobs/5060650-0/park-maintenance-supervisor-ii-kokee-kauai
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[OʻAHU] – UPDATE 9/11/25: Kaʻena Point State Parks - Mokuleʻia Section – Kaʻena Point Vehicle Access Permits Closed for 2025. Purple 2024 permits valid through 2025. Please create an account on Explore Outdoor Hawaiʻi at https://explore.ehawaii.gov/Web/. You will need an Explore Outdoor Hawaiʻi account to apply for a 2026 Kaʻena Vehicle Access Permit, please create an account. Continue to check the Kaʻena Point State Park website for 2026 permit application updates.
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[O’AHU] - UPDATE 9/10/25: Mālaekahana State Recreation Area-Kahuku Section - State Parks is issuing a Request for Qualifications/Request for Proposals for parties interested in developing campgrounds. More info: https://dlnr.hawaii.gov/dsp/announcements/malaekahana-state-recreation-area-rfq-rfp-2026/
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[MOLOKA’I] - UPDATE 8/29/25: Pala’au State Park Pavilion: Due to continued renovation work, the pavilion and camping is CLOSED until further notice.
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[KAUA’I] - 7/11/25: VISITORS TO WAIMEA CANYON AND KŌKEʻE STATE PARKS CAUTIONED TO EXPECT DELAYS AND LIMITED PARKING.
Beginning July 14, 2025, Waimea Canyon Lookout with be closed for construction of safety improvements through early December, 2025. This closure, in addition to several overlapping roadwork projects by both DOT-Highways and DLNR-State Parks, will cause delays, impact traffic patterns, and restrict overall parking capacity in these two popular parks through the end of the year. DOT work is continuing on Waimea Canyon Drive, while work on portions of Kōkeʻe Road from the Kalalau Lookout to Puʻu o Kila lookout will be starting the same week. Visitors can drive as far as the Kalalau Lookout, where improvements will also be initiated on July 17, with limited parking available. We urge patience and driving with care as these various improvements are ongoing. Local visitors are encouraged to enjoy these parks and lookouts on weekends, when most work will be suspended. Waimea Canyon Lookout will be closed for the duration of the project including weekends.
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[KAUAʻI] - UPDATE 3/21/25: Pā‘ula‘ula State Historic Site - Due to construction improvements, the park closure will begin starting March 24 until further notice.
DLNR and Hawaii State Parks Continue Coordinated Efforts to Address Homelessness at Diamond Head
Posted on Apr 7, 2021(HONOLULU) – More than 30 camps on both sides of Diamond Head are being cleaned-up this week. The clean-up at Diamond Head is part of a larger statewide coordinated effort to manage threats to natural and cultural resources on State lands and parks under DLNR jurisdiction.
The statewide efforts by DLNR are not focused only on cleanup and enforcement of “no camping” rules, explained Pua Aiu, who serves as homeless coordinator for DLNR. “Housing is a piece, outreach is a piece, and enforcement is a piece of the plan and if you don’t have all three, it’s not going to work,” said Aiu.
DLNR uses a private contractor to store or dispose items encountered at Diamond Head camp sites. Law enforcement support for the clean-up operations is provided by officers from the DLNR Division of Conservation and Resources Enforcement (DOCARE), and by officers from the Honolulu Police Department District 7 Community Policing Team.
“Having HPD join us has been very helpful because they can easily make connections between what may be happening in Waikīkī and what’s happening on Diamond Head. Our officers cannot always make those connections because they only patrol DLNR lands,” Aiu added.
At Diamond Head, other key partners are case workers from the Institute for Human Services, the City T.E.A.M. Work Hawaii program, and social work students from the University of Hawai’i Thompson School of Social Work and Public Health, who assist in outreach and notification to homeless individuals prior to the enforcement. Outreach is offered in conjunction with shelter and housing programs, such as the City and County of Honolulu’s Housing and Outreach Navigation for Unsheltered (HONU) program.
“Did you want to try get back into the HONU?” asked Aiu of a homeless individual encountered during the clean-up. The HONU is operated by the Honolulu Police Department (HPD) and Aiu or any DLNR staff can call for a pick-up and transport to the HONU; usually arriving within half an hour.
Even if an individual declines HONU assistance, outreach is a critical component to ensure services continues beyond the clean-up date to ensure continuity if an individual is encountered repeatedly. “We don’t have to start from scratch on that person,” Aiu said, regarding the role of homeless outreach. “We know . . . what their needs are, who their case manager is, and we can pick up where we left off.”
DLNR will continue clean-ups on its properties throughout April at locations including Kapena Falls, Sand Island State Recreational Area, and on unencumbered lands in Kapolei and Leeward O‘ahu.
For more information about the State approach to homelessness, visit https://homelessness.hawaii.gov. People can also contact (808) 586-0193 or e-mail [email protected] to report a homeless concern on State lands, including on DLNR lands.
