It's been nine years since eight people died in the tragic rockfall at Kaluanui (Sacred Falls) State Park.

That's far too long for the park to have remained closed to public use. So it's welcome news that the state Parks Division is finalizing plans to reopen it.

In the plan, the division sensibly favors an alternative that would enable visitors to view the spectacular falls from a safe distance and enjoy the area without subjecting the the state to excessive liability.

Geologists studying the area note that the falls and the floor of the valley, hemmed in by steep walls, would defy efforts to build retaining structures or otherwise reduce the rockfall hazard. This means direct access to the falls would make the risk of injuries or fatalities unacceptably high.

The Honolulu consulting firm Oceanit has released a draft of a master plan that's aimed at finding a middle course between keeping the park shuttered and a resumption of unrestricted park use. The plan was developed with community advice and now returns to the community for further comment (see box).

The process has yielded a blueprint that favors "moderate" park use. The park boundaries would be redrawn to place the most hazardous zones off limits.

That alternative offers a reasonable range of improvements and activities that open the region to enjoyment. These include new trails and educational programs highlighting the valley's use in taro production and other activities dating before Western contact.

Wisely, this option would minimize the risk by barring wilderness camping and including adequate signage, so that daytime visitors understand the dangers of flash floods and rockslides.

The community should weigh in this week to offer guidance on which improvements deserve priority and how to phase in the project.

For example, starting with the trail improvements would reopen the valley to those interested in hiking and gathering of flora.

The trails, which channel visitors safely away from the valley walls, would make the park at least partially useable sooner rather than later.

Hawai'i residents are mindful of the deadly power of nature in the Islands, but keeping the park closed to avert danger entirely would be a cultural and educational loss.

Creation of new trails instead would "allow the focus of the park to be directed away from the falls, and toward the ecological, historical and scenic features" of the valley, as the draft plan notes.

Without further delay, it's time to carry out a plan that respects the unpredictability of nature's forces without denying residents access to one of nature's treasures.

That would only compound the tragedy.