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Kokua Line
Question: OK. So the Grinch stole Christmas. But who's responsible for yanking away one of our prime joys of April-May? I'm referring to the culprit(s) who had the lovely shower trees at the Kapiolani Community College parking lot trimmed just a few weeks back, right before the appearance of what for years has been a breathtakingly beautiful panorama of blossoms. The sight lifted the spirits of all who passed along that stretch of Diamond Head Road! Auwe, auwe and auwe again! KCC shower trees
trimmed for safetyQ: I am wondering why they cut back the shower trees on the KCC campus, near the chapel. They trimmed many of the trees to the bottom. This is about the time they blossom. Now we're going to miss them. Why?
Answer: KCC says you'll see "the more spectacular trees" blooming by the end of May or early June. However, next time around, any tree trimming will be done way before the blooming season.
Shower trees were trimmed in lower Parking Lot C because they were obscuring lights, said Ann Kinningham, KCC's director of administrative services. That lot is heavily used by evening students and dining room patrons, she said.
Because of safety concerns, and because the parking lots are heavily used during the regular fall, spring and summer semesters, the trimming was done during Spring Break, March 27-31, she said.
But next time around, "we will plan to trim our trees during the January semester break to avoid any impact to the blooming season of our shower trees," Kinningham said.
She assures the community that "our more spectacular shower trees, which were not trimmed, are located in our Parking Lot B, visible from diamond Head Road and Makapuu Avenue." They should be in full bloom in a few weeks, she said.
"We too believe that (the trees) uplift our spirits and enhance our campus' beauty, " she said.
Auwe
To HMSA for allowing construction in its parking structure on the Rycroft Street side to carry on into the wee hours of the morning. The constant noise of a power saw continued from 6:30 p.m. until 12:30 a.m. Sunday and Monday. The last time we encountered this inconsiderate act was approximately nine months or so ago. I ended up calling 911 to place a complaint. I called HMSA on Tuesday and spoke to the corporate operator and was told that she had no idea of any construction going on. -- R.D.(The problem should have been resolved by Wednesday.
(HMSA did have some construction work involving hand drilling going on in the parking garage, confirmed HMSA senior vice president Cliff Cisco.
(After being notified of the noise on Tuesday, building managers immediately contacted the contractor "and the schedule was modified for the remainder of the work," he said.
("We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused our neighbors and will continue to address this concern with our contractors," Cisco said.)
Mahalo
To the Manoa sidewalk artist who continues to obscure particularly ugly obscenity with beautiful scenes from Manoa. -- A frequent walker along Manoa Road
Auwe
To all the people walking on the street instead of the sidewalk. They expect cars to give way to them, but when it's dark and early in the morning, it can be very dangerous. -- Grace
Need help with problems? Call Kokua Line at 525-8686,
fax 525-6711, or write to P.O. Box 3080, Honolulu 96802.
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