District 11 News


CONSTRUCTION AND REPAIR PROJECTS IMPROVE DISTRICT INFRASTRUCTURE

Major upgrades to area schools near completion: As a Roosevelt High graduate, I have always viewed public school improvements as my top priority.  I’ve pushed for upgrades of older Honolulu schools since the late 1990s, when DOE’s backlog of repair and maintenance projects was over $800 million dollars.

On a positive note, renovations to Roosevelt’s football field have begun. By May 15, Roosevelt will be the first public school in Hawaii with an artificial turf field and new all-weather track. Roosevelt’s Carter Auditorium is also nearing completion as a state-of-the-art performing arts facility. Stevenson Middle School is exploring ideas to update the campus by reconfiguring existing space and adding a new multipurpose building and parking.

During the 2007 legislative session, we funded several school projects: Queen Kaahumanu Elementary School will have $280,000 to use for paving and fencing around an expanded teacher parking area. Lincoln Elementary School will be able to repair their rock wall and make drainage improvements with $940,000. And Stevenson Middle School received $550,000 for Master Plan development and design of campus facilities.

Round Top and Maunalaha flooding repairs: This year’s Act 89 preserved remaining emergency disaster relief funds appropriated in 2006 (Act 118) for repairs along Round Top Drive and in Makiki Valley and for cleanup of the Ala Wai Canal after the continuous storms during February and March 2006.

Repairs to damaged sections of Round Top Drive have now been completed by the City Department of Design & Construction.

The Department of Land and Natural Resources (DLNR) will work on its final phase of repairs to Maunalaha hillside (more permanent slope restoration, re-vegetation/landscaping of the slope). DLNR is also restoring Maunalaha Stream bed, three bridge crossings, and the banks of the stream. The project will cost approximately $686,000 and is expected to take 150 calendar days to complete.

TRANSIT IMPACTS ON URBAN HONOLULU’S LANDSCAPE

Major changes involving commercial and "transit-oriented development (TOD)" could soon be on the horizon for such neighborhoods as McCully-Moili’ili, Ala Moana, Sheridan-Kaheka and Kaka’ako mauka. The City’s transit plans and preliminary TOD legislation will come before the City Council in 2008, as state legislators explore community-building opportunities with McKinley complex schools and health/elder care service providers.

City and state legislators funded a two-year community needs assessment to help older Honolulu communities rebuild as city transit plans take shape. Resident/business planning teams identified community needs and demographics of each area during the summer.  A recent survey asked for more input on community values, auto travel and parking needs, historic preservation and the need for community services and facilities.

Among the initial results: Ala Moana, Sheridan-Kaheka and McCully-Moili’ili have a much larger number of elderly (compared to Honolulu in general), with corresponding needs for “aging in place” services and facilities. Both areas also identified strong demand for affordable housing, meeting facilities, and additional recreational spaces.

The UH Public Policy Center and the Hawaii Alliance for Community Based Economic Development (HACBED) Project Team is now working with designated communities to determine potential impacts of transit plans and routes; to identify the communities’ preferred scenarios; and help guide land use, tax structure and funding strategies to achieve these scenarios.  For more information, contact HACBED Team Coordinator Bob Agres at 550-2661.

2007 DISTRICT LEGISLATION

Legislation adopted by the Senate in 2007 includes measures important to our district: we adopted measures designed to help students, families, and the elderly, and to address housing and health care issues. For a comprehensive listing, please check the “2007 Legislative Highlights” in the Archives section.

Native Hawaiian Health/Science Project – As a corollary to this year’s legislation, Queen's Medical Center received a $747,644 grant from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute to develop an educational program aimed at increasing interest in science and health care among Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander students. The grant will be undertaken with partners Papakolea Community Development Center (PCDC) and Stevenson Middle School beginning with the 2007-08 school year.

Condo Lessees & Condo “Court” – Because of the high concentration of condominium properties in the Makiki area, housing issues affect many district residents. Act 166 (SB 600) provides an incentive for property owners to sell the underlying fee of a condo property to individual condo lessees. It will help older residents retain their homes in leasehold condos whose lease terms are soon expiring, by exempting from taxation 100% of the gain realized by the underlying fee owner from the sale of their leased fee interest to the association of apartment owners or the residential cooperative corporation of the leasehold units during 2008-2012.

Act 242 (SB 1654) clarifies the requirements for condominium management dispute resolution for condominiums created before July 1, 2006.

Pedestrian Safety – Elderly pedestrians (especially in Ala Moana and McCully-Moili’ili) account for the highest number of pedestrian fatalities in Hawaii compared to all other age groups. Act 125 (HB 375) seeks to improve pedestrian safety with increased fines and clarification of a driver’s duty to stop in the presence of pedestrians. Act 10 adopted during the veto override session (SB 1191) appropriated $3 million for Department of Transportation to work with nonprofit organizations and the counties to make immediate improvements to high-risk crosswalks and roadways.

Caregiver Support – Many Hawaii families shoulder the responsibility of helping care for our elders. Act 204 (SB 1916) strengthens support of family caregivers by extending the joint legislative committee on family caregiving, requiring a comprehensive assessment of care recipients’ needs and the needs of their family caregivers, and providing funds to expand the services of the kupuna care program.

Graffiti Penalties – Act 196 (SB 228) establishes additional penalties for graffiti by requiring a minor (or the minor’s parents or legal guardians) to remove the graffiti from property he or she defaced, pay for the costs of removal and supplies, and to perform a minimum of 80 hours of community service in graffiti removal.