Kailua residents can discuss the trend of homeowners installing gates to block beach access along private roads at two meetings scheduled today and next week.

City Council Chairwoman Barbara Marshall will hold her monthly 3-TALK meeting today, and the Kailua Neighborhood Board meeting is set for Oct. 4. Both meetings will start at 7 p.m.

The gates are expected to be a prime topic at both meetings.

Debate ensued after homeowners living on L'Orange Place — a private road off North Kalaheo Avenue — installed a 6-foot-high gate in August that blocks public access to the beach.

After decades of discussions, 15 of the 16 households on the street voted to erect the gate, said John Price, who has lived on L'Orange Place for 20 years.

Residents were growing tired of increased traffic, noise, litter and crime in the area over the years. They've dealt with late-night revelers, bonfires on the beach and irresponsible beachgoers who leave trash along their private road. Nearly all the homes have been burglarized.

While the increased crime is not unique to L'Orange Place, "enough is enough," Price said.

"At some point you're entitled to enjoy your own home," said Price, who cited safety and security issues as driving reasons for erecting the gate. The crime "is getting worse, not better," he said.

Some Kailua residents are now complaining about the loss of such a convenient access, one of just a few along Kalaheo Avenue.

"This is super unfair because now there are only a few (public right-of-ways) left," said Wendy Watson-Erickson, a longtime Kailua resident who accessed Kailua Beach from L'Orange Place for years until the gate went up.

"One by one, they're shutting down.

"It's a certain thing we have (in Hawai'i), and it needs to be perpetuated," she said. "And we're losing it."

The residents of L'Orange Place knew the gate would upset some people who frequent the right-of-way, but Price said the community had reached its breaking point.

"We're not trying to be vindictive," Price said. "We're trying to preserve a nice lane for the people who live on it and maintain it and keep it the way it should be. ... We're not trying to cause trouble. We're just trying to live peacefully."

Reach Catherine E. Toth at ctoth@honoluluadvertiser.com.