WAIKIKI — The number of homeless people in the state's No. 1 tourist destination appears to be on the rise, prompting businesses to take the unusual step of hiring a social worker to help address the problem.

The Waikiki Business Improvement District Association, made up of dozens of businesses, also has funded two homeless counts to better understand the scope of the problem in Waikiki.

The group's unexpected approach has garnered wide support from advocates and residents who want a long-term solution to homelessness in Waikiki.

"Typically, (business associations) aren't doing this type of work," said Karl Kim, a University of Hawai'i urban planning professor who conducted the counts with his students.

Between September 2006 and April 2007, Waikiki saw an increase of 49 homeless people — up 31 percent to 206 — according to the latest count that Kim and his students conducted and presented publicly for the first time at Tuesday's Waikiki Neighborhood Board meeting.

But some residents also say the humanitarian approach should be accompanied by tougher laws to stop panhandling and loitering among the homeless.

"The issue of homelessness in Waikiki has been one of our top problems," said board member Mike Peters, speaking at the meeting. "But many of us have more of a problem with panhandlers and aggressive solicitors rather than homeless people who experience some bad luck."

Neighborhood board members voted 10-6 to support a motion to prohibit aggressive panhandling or soliciting within 50 feet of ATMs or check-cashing businesses. They also voted unanimously in support of an anti-loitering law.

The measures were only advisory, but board members said they send a message to lawmakers that homelessness in Waikiki needs to be addressed — both through tougher legislation and with more housing and other services.

The homeless counts taken by Kim and his students also included Ala Wai Mauka and parts of Ala Moana around the Hawai'i Convention Center.

Overall, the number of homeless counted in all the areas increased by 18 people to 261. Advocates say it is unclear to what extent the homeless population in Waikiki was affected by the city's decision to close Ala Moana Beach Park nightly in March 2006, which forced about 200 homeless people to move elsewhere.

SCATTERED EVERYWHERE

Many of those homeless went to the state's Next Step shelter in Kaka'ako, but others scattered to surrounding communities and could have ended up in Waikiki, they said.

The new count, which was conducted between 2 and 4 a.m. on a weekday in April, found more homeless at Ala Wai Boat Harbor, the main corridor of Waikiki proper, and Kapi'olani Park.

Police Maj. Randy Macadangdang, the commander of the Waikiki substation, also pointed out at the board meeting that officers have issued more than 1,500 citations for illegal camping in the community since January.

Business owners, residents and social service providers agree the numbers point to the need for more attention to homelessness in Waikiki, where thousands of tourists spend much of their Hawai'i vacation.

But not everyone agrees on how to approach the problem.

The business association started tackling the issue last year, when it provided $20,000 to Kim and his students to conduct counts and a report on the characteristics of homeless people in the community.

Then, in July, the association donated $25,000 to the Waikiki Health Center to fund a social worker who could focus on the community.

TOUGH TASK AHEAD

Jan Yamane, executive director of the Waikiki improvement district association, said the decision to hire the social worker, Michelle Sajona, was part of an effort to seek out long-term solutions to homelessness.

The hope is that Sajona will prove successful in helping get some homeless people off the streets of Waikiki, ultimately improving the overall look and business climate in the community. But it may take a long time for Sajona to make a dent in the population, with so few affordable housing options available and since some homeless aren't interested in getting aid.

Since she started in August, Sajona has helped two of the 92 homeless people she has talked to link up with case workers and get on waiting lists for housing. Others have been helped with hygiene and food supplies.

But Yamane pointed out that just having someone work solely with homeless in Waikiki is an improvement. The Waikiki Care-A-Van, for example, does help homeless in the community but also serves populations of homeless islandwide.

"We know it's larger than us," Yamane said. "The situation is complicated and I think it's going to take the resources of a lot of different agencies. But we can address them (the homeless) with different needs and make some inroads in reducing the homeless population. We thought that this was a means of contributing to a solution."

STRIKING A BALANCE

The Waikiki Neighborhood Board also is searching for solutions, and dedicated its two-hour meeting Tuesday to discussing homelessness. About 30 people gathered at the Waikiki Community Center to join the debate.

Some said the homeless are marring the landscape and hurting tourism.

Others said enacting new laws to keep homeless out isn't the answer.

Meanwhile, many board members said the community should strike a balance between the two options, offering support to social service providers and also pushing for laws to prohibit panhandling and loitering.

"To me, it's not just about getting them out of Waikiki," said Louis Erteschik, vice chairman of the board. "But I think we all agree that we don't want people to be sleeping all over the beaches or all over the sidewalks."

DISTINCTIONS NEEDED

Mark Smith, also on the board, said there needs to be a distinction made between homeless and "aggressive homeless" who loiter and panhandle, which he contends are the bulk of the homeless population in Waikiki.

"This is a subset of the homeless (on O'ahu)," Smith said at the meeting. "These are the people who are making very foul-mouthed, abusive comments to Japanese tourists. These are people who would make homeless people ashamed."

But Charles Balcher, who has lived in Waikiki for 30 years, said he didn't like the direction of the meeting and preferred the approach the Business Improvement District Association was taking.

"I think they're treating the homeless too much like criminals," Balcher said of the board.

In Waikiki yesterday, small groups of homeless people were sleeping on benches or blankets on the ground near Honolulu Zoo, along the waterfront on Kalakaua Avenue and in Kapi'olani Park. Not all of them had spent the night.

Stan Webb, 54, sleeps in a tent about a mile outside of Waikiki — he asked that the location not be disclosed — and spends his days in Waikiki because it's near showers, bathrooms and services. He said laws to push out the homeless, like the one that doesn't allow people to sleep in parks overnight, hurt more than they help.

"I see a lot of people who are ill because they don't get enough sleep," said Webb, who has been homeless a little more than two years.

He said he was pushed into homelessness after losing his job.

'WE'RE GOOD PEOPLE'

Roxanne Highland, 45, sleeps near Queen's Surf Beach at night and is constantly being issued illegal camping citations. She said most homeless people in Waikiki don't panhandle or loiter. "We're good people," she said.

Highland moved onto the streets in July after losing her job. She has tried to look for a new job, but often can't leave her possessions unattended, she said. She pointed to her belongings — an inflatable raft she uses as a bed and two trash bags for her clothes — sitting under a banyan tree, and sighed.

Part of the difficulty with the homeless in Waikiki is their demographics.

As part of the September 2006 count, 90 homeless people were interviewed to determine whether they work, how long they have been homeless and why.

MANY SINGLE MEN

The study found that most of the homeless in Waikiki are single men. The biggest reasons for homelessness were trouble paying rent and unemployment.

Darlene Hein, program director for the Waikiki Care-A-Van program, told the neighborhood board it is difficult to house single men and even more difficult to find help for those with substance or mental-health issues.

Add to those frustrations the barriers to permanent housing or other residential programs — including waiting lists and requirements for up-to-date documentation — along with the fact some homeless say they don't want to get off the streets.

"It is a different population than the rest of O'ahu," Sajona said, adding some of her homeless clients initially refuse food or other supplies. "It's difficult. It takes a lot of understanding."

Reach Mary Vorsino at mvorsino@honoluluadvertiser.com.