There are some things that people just assume are “supposed” to be there and until they aren’t, no one gives it any thought. When that happens, more questions arise than answers, some even giving rise to what seems to be inevitable in today’s world — a conspiracy theory.
The fish hoist and weigh scale at the Fuel Dock in Honokohau Harbor has been shut down since Sept. 25. No one saw this coming and no one seems to know when it will be back up and running, both of which are to say the least — odd.
It’s an innocuous beast, this hoist and scale. The brawny hoist resides high up on a rail, outside of one’s usual view plane. The brain is the scale’s digital dashboard which lives hermit like in a closet on the dock. One can walk up and down the dock a hundred times and its existence would never enter your thoughts – unless you wanted to weigh a fish.
Secluded away even more is the heart of this apparatus, the electrical power source. The “on-off” switch for the entire system is locked up inside what used to be the Charter Desk at Honokohau. The current situation arose last week when the Charter Desk abruptly ceased operations and liquidated all inventory on site.
When they closed and locked their doors at the end of the day, they also closed and locked the fishing community’s access to hoist and scale, shutting off everyone’s ability to weigh any fish. There is not another fish scale anywhere up and down the Kona coast for people to fall back on.
On top of a conspiracy theory we also have anonymous sources. Even a whistle blower. Well, maybe not a whistle blower.
Sources say that there is a new entity going into the Charter Desk space that will be more friendly toward the plight of the public fisher folks in the future, but they won’t say who that entity is going to be.
The owner of the Charter Desk said that they will be completely out of the space by Oct. 31, but did not know if fishers have to wait all of October before they will be able to weigh a fish – or not.
The fate of the hoist and scale, according to the Charter Desk owner, is now in the hands of the owner of the Fuel Dock, and their local management team at Jack’s Diving Locker. This group has been responsive to questions, but as to the question of when the hoist and scale will again be operative, there has been no response.
Filling out the roster of intrigue we have the State DLNR/DOBOR harbor managers, because Honokohau is a state owned facility. Sources close to the initial establishment of the Charter Desk have said that the Fuel Dock is required to keep a fish hoist and weigh scale open for the public as part of the entitlement package the state gave them with their lease.
Inquiries to the top brass of DLNR/DOBOR as to the veracity of this claim by that source have gone unanswered.
Members of the fishing community have been calling around, trying to find one central figure who might spread some light on why this happened, how a “public” scale got tangled up in all this complexity, and when the scale will be back in action – to no avail. It has been suggested to those close to this situation that some sort of public outreach might be in their best interest (if for no other reason but to stop speculation and rumors) but again … nothing.
The Charter Desk is/was a private company and if they want to shut down, they have every right to shut down. The Fuel Dock is a private company and if the next entity lined up to go into the Charter Desk space has requested confidentiality, then they have every right to confidentiality, as per normal in business.
Does the public have a “right” to a fish scale in a harbor, owned and managed by the state? If so, who pays for it and the maintenance? Up until recently, the Charter Desk has been, not to mention liability insurance. They owned it, they closed it. Simple.
Aside from the usual gamut of fishermen in and out each day, there are also other businesses that rely on the hoist/scale as part of their normal day to day operations – commercial fishing boats and charter boats offload there, as do fishing tournaments, to name a few.
The last “major” tournament of the 2019 season ran last week and one of the boats put a 400-pound blue in the boat to weigh, not knowing of the situation back at the dock. They were not allowed to weigh their fish or use the hoist to get it out of the boat.
And, yet, no one at or near the helm seems inclined to quell the bad PR, the inconvenience to the community or to even announce a plan. So now there is a conspiracy theory going around.
Front and center in the public eye of all this intrigue are the good folks at Jack’s Diving Locker. All the other principals live off island. Jack’s is a steady, strong local company that has been operating in Kona for almost 40 years. When the folks in California hunted around Kona to find a local company to manage the facility, Jack’s became an obvious favorite. Jack’s has a number of boats that use the Fuel Dock, strong retail experience and friendly, competent staff. They have an interest in keeping the place going and have done a good job.
However, because Kona is Kona, the rumor mill has been allowed to churn and the fishermen are the ones who have been “displaced,” there is talk going around that the divers like to look at fish and do not approve of fishermen who kill them. The thought is that the divers now in charge at the Fuel Dock don’t want the fish hoist and scale to go back up, hence the current situation.
Sources close to the parties say this is as plausible as a Nicki Minaj presidency, but really, one “official statement” from somebody could be a good move, as well might a new solution for a “public” scale in a State harbor. But that too, may be as plausible as a Nicki Minaj presidency.
