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Friday, July 9, 1999

Tapa


What to do with
the Natatorium?

Move the memorial arch to Punchbowl Cemetery

The Waikiki War Memorial and Natatorium should be torn down. The memorial arch should be relocated to Punchbowl, since its current location on Waikiki Beach is inappropriate.

Then the beach should be restored. There should be a promenade with showers and rest rooms. A surrounding sea wall should be built several yards out, and the bottom of the pool could be filled with sand.

This should cost less than the $11.5 million projected to restore the unhealthy and dilapidated Natatorium.

Robert S.K. Kam

Outdoor volleyball court is the answer

Regarding the Natatorium: A proposal was made to the mayor about three years ago to restore the arches, fix the bathrooms and bleachers, fill the pool with sand, and turn it into a world-class, professional tournament, outdoor volleyball site.

With Diamond Head in the background and a professional volleyball tour, the sports TV cameras would sell Hawaii in these decreased tourist times to a sports audience.

Hawaii volleyball players are highly trained and conditioned and can compete with the best mainland players. This plan would keep the Natatorium but eliminate the water problems.

Gerry DeBenedetti

Natatorium was cause of athlete's foot

When I think about the Natatorium, my feet itch. They itch because the bacteria-laden water at the Natatorium were the source of my athlete's foot, an affliction that has plagued me for 52 years. People weren't such sticklers about public health and safety back then.

Mayor Harris might want to consider the reasons behind the regulations governing public swimming pools, especially salt-water pools.

I'm thankful that Judge Nakatani ruled that those regulations apply to the Natatorium.

Why does the focus remain on re-creating an unhealthy and expensive salt-water pool right next to the beautiful Pacific Ocean? If you want people to visit the memorial:

Bullet Keep the arch and refurbish it.

Bullet Fill the pool up with sand and make a beach volleyball court.

Bullet Use the steps as seats for spectators.

Bullet Create more parking areas, so more people can actually visit the memorial.

Roy K. Fujimoto

Salt-water pool has significance

I support complete restoration of the Waikiki War Memorial and Natatorium as a salt-water swimming pool. The updated design for the memorial's restoration will address any realistic concerns for water quality, and will allow the pool water to be of the same quality as the surrounding ocean.

The Natatorium is not only of statewide significance but of national and international importance. It is listed on both state and national Registers of Historic Places.

In fact, the Natatorium was on the National Trust for Historic Preservation's list as one of the 11 most endangered sites in the country. When properly restored, it will again be a national treasure.

The swimming pool is a critical part of the monument. It was designed as a "living memorial" to those who lost their lives in World War I. It opened in 1927 on Duke Kahanamoku's birthday, with the Duke swimming the first lap. What more fitting a tribute to the people of Hawaii than a memorial linked to swimming and the ocean?

We must restore the Natatorium to reflect the intention of the original design. Would anyone suggest that we "change" the design of the USS Arizona Memorial when we do maintenance or repair on that site?

Of course not.

David Scott
Executive Director
Historic Hawaii Foundation

Government keeps helping rich, foreign hotel owners

John Titchen's July 5 View Point column clearly pointed out the mayor's unwise intent to rebuild the Natatorium as an example of the neglect of participatory democracy.

State legislators continue to do the same thing with endless subsidies for the tourist industry -- such as their proposal for hotel remodeling tax breaks.

They must know that the rest of us oppose paying higher taxes and losing services to benefit affluent and offshore hotel owners.

Jerome G. Manis


Quotables

"President Mortimer lacks the
charismatic leadership required to
jump-start interest in the university
at the Legislature and in the state
government. He's lost tremendous
credibility with the faculty."

Wayne K. Panoke
FIRST VOTING STUDENT MEMBER OF
THE UNIVERSITY OF HAWAII
BOARD OF REGENTS
Expressing disappointment in what he says is
a lack of leadership at the university


"This all makes me nervous.
I'm glad it's daytime."

Eric Kendrick
ALOHEA STREET RESIDENT
As more than 30 Honolulu police officers with dogs searched
Kaimuki for a bank robber involved in a violent robbery
at American Savings in Kahala


Renaming streets desecrates sacrifices

I take issue with the Barbers Point Redevelopment Commission and its plan to rename the avenues and streets of the former military base in accordance with a 1979 law that requires streets to have Hawaiian names.

Not only is this a shame if it happens, but it desecrates the historical value that these names have. They relate to ships that fought battles during World War II. To rename the streets will bring shame to all the men and women who fought on these ships for the freedom we have today.

Because of their sacrifice, we were never occupied by foreign forces in Hawaii, and that freedom was retained. As such, these names are sacred, no matter what the law says.

Stanford J. Fichtman
Via the Internet

Site was called Kalaeloa in the first place

Sueann Carter misses the point in her July 3 letter on restoring the name Kalaeloa to the area that has been temporarily called Barbers Point. Restoring the Hawaiian name is not going to show any more disrespect for our past than the U.S. military did when it changed it to Barbers Point more than a half century ago.

The restoration of the name shows that someone has respect for Hawaii and Hawaiians. And Kalaeloa will always be Kalaeloa.

Carmen Uilani Haugen
Via the Internet

July 4th revelers should clean up their act

As my family and I made the ritualistic march down to the park to watch the Fourth of July celebrations, I found myself disappointed -- but not with the fireworks or the wonderful music that accompanied them. I was stunned by what seemed to be nothing more than an opportunity for street vendors to make a quick buck.

I do admit that I participated in the madness; my family spent money on hot dogs and cotton candy. So I guess it is not so much that these things were available to us but that people couldn't even clean up after themselves.

Please take pride in your land and pick up after yourselves and your children. Remember, if we don't keep it clean and safe, no one else will.

Joahn Sperry
Wahiawa
Via the Internet

Banning fireworks still won't get rid of them

Before the semiannual ruckus about banning fireworks starts up again, we should know if a ban will make a difference.

On July 4, I spoke with my sister, who lives in upstate New York. Fireworks have been illegal in New York for decades. At 10 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time, my sister was complaining that the fireworks had not stopped since that morning. At the same time in Hawaii, 4 p.m., my Mililani neighborhood was quiet.

Do we really believe that banning fireworks will eliminate them?

Jessie Weinberger
Mililani
Via the Internet

'Adult' businesses need monitoring

Kudos to the Honolulu City Council for its common sense and consensus on two proposals related to the problem of sex-oriented businesses (SOBs). We euphemistically refer to them as "adult businesses" -- nude strip clubs, phony "massage" parlors fronting for prostitution rings, peep shows, etc.

These SOBs exploit young women, increase crime, drugs and prostitution; and decrease property values. That's why they are stringently regulated by municipalities and also why the U.S. Supreme Court has consistently OK'd those regulations.

Communities have a right to protect themselves from the negative effects of SOBs. Is there anyone who hasn't been embarrassed by the near omnipresence of SOBs near the Hawaii Convention Center? What an impression to give our island visitors.

Thankfully, the City Council is moving quickly to address the problem:

Bullet Bill 54 closes an enormous loophole by clarifying that minors aren't allowed to "bring your own booze" (BYOB) into nude strip clubs, nor are they allowed to be strippers. This brings the BYOB nude strip clubs into conformity with existing Honolulu Liquor Commission rules.

Bullet Bill 55 would shut down SOBs with three prostitution-related offenses in a five-year period.

Kelly M. Rosati
Executive Director
Hawaii Family Forum

House should give in to Senate demands

Since May, when the Legislature adjourned, House Speaker Calvin Say has been saying he wants a special session to fix the hotel tax incentive bill. Now he has his chance. All he has to do is let the Senate put its 24 bills on the special session agenda, too!

As long as the tax bill passes, does it really matter how many bills are debated?

Sam Yong
Waimanalo
Via the Internet

Tourism authority plan has wrong focus

Just as Waikiki was becoming more affordable and local-friendly, along comes the Hawaii Tourism Authority with its new strategic plan. Accordingly, the plan will emphasize visitor expenditures instead of the traditional visitor count method.

In travelspeak, this translates to "budget visitors are unwelcome."

Whether this risky plan works or not, prices will increase in Waikiki and beyond, further hurts budget-minded visitors and locals. Ironically, this plan alienates the very people who have supported and are needed for the visitor industry to succeed.

Also, the plan does not mention one of Hawaii's most important tourist groups: U.S. veterans and their families. They reverently come to visit the great memorials of sacrifice -- Punchbowl Cemetery, the USS Arizona, the USS Missouri, etc. Affordable pricing and special accommodations are critical to their needs.

To forget them is un-American.

Bob Iinuma
Waipahu

Tapa

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