On Friday, September 18, 2015, Worldwide PARK(ing) Day, thousands of public parking spaces worldwide will temporarily transform into public spaces, including nine "parks" in Downtown Honolulu and Kakaʻako. 88 Block Walks will lead tours of the Kaka'ako parklets every hour from 12-3 pm, departing from the Better Block Hawaii Parklet in front of This Is It Bakery (443 Cooke St).

PARK(ing) Day is an annual open-source global event where citizens, artists and activists collaborate to temporarily transform metered parking spaces into “PARK(ing)” spaces: temporary public places. The mission of PARK(ing) Day is to call attention to the need for more urban open space and connections, to generate critical debate around how public space is created and allocated, and to improve the quality of urban human habitat ... at least until the meter runs out!

By turning parking spaces into instant parks, PARK(ing) Day is a creative way to demonstrate the real need to have and create parks in our cities. Across the world, cities are renewing their investments in parks because civic leaders have come to recognize that close-to-home parks, gardens, playgrounds, and public spaces are essential if we are to have cities that aren't just livable, but lovable.

The organizers will participate in a community discussion held later in the day on 6:00 p.m. at BoxJelly, at 307 Kamani Street (walking/biking/busing encouraged/parking limited), regarding lessons learned from PARK(ing) Day and needs for public spaces and connections in the urban environment. The City and County of Honolulu will also present an update on its draft Parklet Program Guide.

PARK(ing) Day is a concept created by San Francisco art collective Rebar in 2005 to re-imagine the potential of the metered parking space.