WAI'ANAE — The number of homeless along one of O'ahu's most economically fragile stretches has grown dramatically, tripling since 2002 and sending the majority of those who have no place to live to the area's public beaches and parks.

Hundreds of campsites dominate the view across beaches from Nanakuli to Kea'au, in effect turning the 16-mile coastline into the "tent city" residents wanted to avoid when they hooted down a grassroots proposal in 2003 that would have created a drug-free, supervised haven for the homeless near the Wai'anae Boat Harbor.

Just the year before, alarmed officials and service providers said the Wai'anae Coast homeless problem had reached "critical mass."

"It's not a crisis anymore," said Stanlyn Placencia, executive director of the Wai'anae Community Outreach center, which serves the area's homeless.

"We now have an epidemic of unsheltered individuals here."

The Wai'anae Coast has long had its share of homeless, but of late the numbers have stunned even those accustomed to seeing their beachside tents. Residents say the problem has never been worse, and what's more, figures suggest that the Wai'anae Coast now hosts the bulk of O'ahu's homeless.

Although exact numbers are not possible to track because of the transient nature of unsheltered people, the best figures suggesting the increase in the area's homeless population come via Placencia's program.

In 2002, the outreach program handled a total of 1,082 "unduplicated homeless" clients. Last year that total had reached 3,477. So far this year, 519 new clients have signed up.

Meanwhile, according to the Housing and Community Development Corporation of Hawai'i, the number of "unsheltered homeless" for all of O'ahu in fiscal 2005 came to 5,762.

'OUR BEACHES' GONE

"I would say that 85 to 90 percent of the homeless here live on the beach parks," said Jo Jordan, who chairs the parks committee for the Wai'anae Coast Neighborhood Board.

Jordan said Maj. Michael Tamashiro of District 8 of the Ho-nolulu Police Department informed the board Tuesday that his officers recently counted 280 illegal campsites between Kahe Beach Park and Keawa'ula Bay.

"It's getting out of hand," board chairwoman Patty Teruya said later. "We no longer use the beaches, and it's sad because it's not safe."

Helen Eschenbacher of Kaimuki said she often visits the Wai'anae Coast when friends and relatives come to O'ahu. But after she tried to get a camping permit there several months ago, she was told none were available.

"There's no place to go camping or picnic anymore," Eschenbacher said. "It's awful that these people can take the island away from the rest of us. Give us back our beaches."

Tamashiro also told the board that police and other city and county departments are working to formulate a strategy to deal with the situation, according to Jordan.

Tamashiro could not be contacted for this story.

Authorities are faced with the dilemma of meeting taxpayer demands for public beach recreational and campsite access, and contending with a homeless population that — because it has no alternative — simply moves to a different beach or park when police enforce statutes against living in public areas.

"It's like kicking an anthill," said Will Ford, an area outreach case manager for U.S. Vets, a program that assists homeless veterans. "They just spread out everywhere and then bunch up someplace else."

Police, frustrated with chasing the same homeless people from beach to beach, helped initiate the grassroots "Camp Hope" proposal that residents rejected in 2003.

Since then they've all watched the problem worsen.

NO LONGER HIDDEN

Why is Wai'anae's homeless problem so acute at a time when Hawai'i is enjoying the nation's lowest unemployment rate and a booming economy?

The reasons are numerous, Placencia said. For example, as the homeless have been hustled out of one area — such as after the nightly closing of Ala Moana Beach Park — some have migrated to Wai'anae.

A bigger part of the problem is the collapse of the "hidden homeless" safety net — brought on in part by the housing boom, she said.

"Hidden homeless" (folks who move in temporarily with relatives or friends and avoid being listed as homeless) have been edged out of Hawai'i's red-hot housing market by higher rent prices and a decreasing number of rental units, Placencia said.

"The hidden homeless are no longer hidden," she said.

A case in point is Nolalea Noland, 49, who until about a year ago was renting a one-room apartment with a toilet for $250 a month. When the rent jumped to $450, Noland, who lives on a fixed income, ended up on the street.

"It's not easy living out here," said Noland, who for the past few months has been camped in a tent at Ma'ili Beach Park with her poi dog, Kinipopo.

She said police visit the camp regularly — particularly on Wednesdays and Thursdays when camping is not permitted on any O'ahu beaches — and issue citations.

"I myself have had three tickets," she said. "The first was dismissed, and I'm fighting the other two."

Noland said she doesn't drink or do drugs, but she said she has not been able to work because she has cancer. She has no living relatives in Hawai'i to stay with, she said.

"Everybody here's homeless," said Noland, motioning toward some five dozen tents lining a quarter-mile grassy stretch. "And, I'd say it's got a lot worse the last few months.

"Why? Because rents are so high. People can't make ends meet."

'EVERYTHING IS SNAPPING'

Placencia said government officials should be talking less about creating "affordable housing," and speaking more about creating "affordable rentals."

"Everything is snapping," she said. "Our services are stretched thin. We have good, decent people who can't get a good, decent place to live."

Jordan believes the coast's homeless predicament could be substantially eased if the state would open a temporary homeless transitional shelter in Wai'anae similar to "Next Step," recently opened in Kaka'ako.

"It could be a mini-shelter, smaller in scale," Jordan said. "Instead of 200 people, the facility could maybe accommodate, say, 75 to 90 people."

Jordan acknowledged that there's no facility available in the area, such as the warehouse that was converted into the Kaka'ako shelter. But she said a large, stabilized tent structure could work.

Reminded that the concept resembles the "Camp Hope" model residents three years ago screamed would become a "dumping ground" that would transform Wai'anae into the "homeless capital of Hawai'i," Jordan said, "Look at what they've got now.

"I think our community is ready for something like that. I think the people would be responsive."

Gov. Linda Lingle is aware of the homeless situation on the Wai'anae Coast, and state officials are working to determine if the shelter idea might be replicated there, said Lingle spokesman Russell Pang.

"We could see how this is working at Next Step and how it would work best in other parts of the island," he said.

Placencia said: "I believe our community is ready for anything right now."

Reach Will Hoover at whoover@honoluluadvertiser.com.