Kokua Line June Watanabe

---

City to use abandoned building

Question: Who owns the abandoned building in the 600 block of Middle Street, makai of the bus yard? Homeless persons from under the nearby airport viaduct interchange have taken up residence inside the building, and the roadside looks like a dump strewn with discarded furniture, trash, metal objects, etc. It's not only an eyesore, it's a dangerous situation that could expose the owner to liability should someone get hurt on the premises.

Answer: The city Department of Transportation Services has taken over the property.

It wants to consolidate its Handi-Van operations, including building a new maintenance facility, at that site, 611 Middle St.

Currently, part of the Handi-Van's administration is housed at 801 Middle St., part of it is at the Love's Bakery property at 911 Middle St. and part of it is at the Kalihi Shopping Center on King Street.

The plan is to bring the administrative and maintenance facilities together in one location, said James Burke, chief of the Public Transit Division.

"We are getting close to starting construction," he said. The first phase, involving demolition of existing buildings, is expected to get started within the next month. The department is awaiting approval of required permits.

Burke acknowledged "there is a lot of debris" and "it looks abandoned because it is," but "it is our property and we will be developing it and starting construction soon."

Previously, Yee Hop Realty rented the property to various businesses, Burke said, including an auto towing company, a motorcycle shop, construction businesses and an earth recycling company.

Q: I was just wondering at what point of sale gas pumps should slow down. I have noticed that the calibration at the station I pump gas from has been slowing down around 50 cents of the dollar. For example, if I buy $5 gas, it will slow down at $4.50. I am pretty sure it is supposed to slow down at about 20 cents of the dollar, or say $4.80. Is there a law for this or not?

A: There is no law or rule requiring the gas flow to slow down at a set or certain point, according to William Pierpont, manager of the state Department of Agriculture's Measurement Standards Branch.

The pump should automatically shut off at the dollar amount requested.

"There is a point, as it reaches the amount, that it will slow down," Pierpont said. But there is nothing in the law that specifies at what point that happens.

By the same token, if your tank gets full before the amount purchased is reached, then it should shut off and you would get a refund.

The regulatory concern is in how a gas pump works, whether it is delivering the gas properly.

"Our interest would be that that the pump is delivering accurately, both the amount that was requested or the dollar value that was requested," he said. "As long as those are both on the mark, then there isn't an issue."