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Kokua Line
June Watanabe
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State checks cars parked at airport
Question: The state Department of Transportation recently prohibited airport workers from parking in the interisland parking lot due to lack of parking. However, my co-workers and I have noticed several cars that have not moved in months. Airport security officials told me they have counted 27 vehicles occupying valuable parking spaces. Not only is the state and AMPCO Parking losing revenue, some of the vehicles are used by homeless people. Who is responsible for removing these vehicles?
Answer:Only about 10 to 12 vehicles "appear to be abandoned," according to Transportation Department spokesman Scott Ishikawa.
He said last week that AMPCO "is in the process of completing their research and will remove these vehicles if found to be abandoned."
There are another 40 or so vehicles that had been parked for more than 30 days, but the owners had made prior arrangements with AMPCO to account for long out-of-state trips, Ishikawa said.
As for the homeless, he said airport security officials "are not aware of any homeless people living in abandoned vehicles but will continue to monitor and take action when necessary."
Q:Last week, private contractors dug around various manhole covers on newly paved Hapapa Street in Waipahu. They poured concrete, let it set and were to come back the following day to patch it with asphalt and make it level with the road. Here it is nearly a week later, and nothing has been done. We're left with these "man-made" potholes that are about 3 to 5 inches deep. The only safety measure done was to put up traffic cones so that drivers can go around the man-made potholes. This has caused drivers to drive around them as if they were on a obstacle course. This is very dangerous not only for the drivers, but for the students walking to August Ahrens Elementary School. Can something be done ASAP before someone gets hurt?
A:The problem should have been fixed by now.
The contractor was hired for pavement work in the area, said Laverne Higa, chief of the city Department of Facility Maintenance. The manholes were "adjusted" to meet the new pavement grades.
"Normally the adjusted manholes are patched within two days after the concrete sets," she said.
But on April 28, asphalt suppliers had to limit production, so began rationing the supply. That meant the work could not be finished.
However, "the contractor did not use good judgment and continued to work on more manholes, leaving additional manholes incomplete," Higa said.
The contractor was warned and ceased work until the asphalt became available earlier this week. The manholes were to have been patched yesterday, Higa said.
Q: Where can we recycle our numerous telephone directories?
A: You can drop them off at any community recycling bin, located at schools and some shopping centers around the island.
Got a question or complaint? Call 529-4773, fax 529-4750, or write to Kokua Line, Honolulu Star-Bulletin, 500 Ala Moana Blvd., No. 7-210, Honolulu 96813. As many as possible will be answered. E-mail to
kokualine@starbulletin.com.
See also: Useful phone numbers