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Kokua Line
Question: Between June 19 and 23, workers began restriping the parking lot at Kukui Gardens. Some residents had their spaces changed to "handicap parking," although some have continued to park in those spaces until management lets us know where our new spaces will be. On June 26, workers removed the covering on the poles with the "handicap" signs attached and this got us worried. On June 29, the signs were recovered. Confused by
parking lot restripingWhat has us confused and concerned is that the "handicap" logo stenciled on the asphalt and the "handicap" signs on the Dumpster enclosure wall facing the parking lot are still uncovered. We don't want to get towed or fined. Can you help us find out what is going on and whether we can get towed or ticketed for parking in the "handicap" spaces, even though we haven't been told where to park?
Answer: Until officially told otherwise, you can continue to park in your assigned spaces.
Allen Lau, manager of the 822-unit Kukui Gardens complex at 408 N. Beretania St., hopes the entire parking situation -- who can park in what stalls and designating areas for second and third assigned stalls -- will be resolved by the end of this month.
It's a complicated situation that dates back to 1998, Lau said, when renovations began to remove asbestos and upgrade apartments in the 31-year-old private housing complex, which operates under federal Housing and Urban Development guidelines.
One result was that 48 handicap parking stalls also had to be provided to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Since it takes three regular stalls to make two handicap stalls, management is looking to make up for the loss in numbers by converting some full-size stalls to compact size.
For now, residents are being asked to park in handicap stalls even though they don't require such parking, "until we get ourselves together," Lau said. "The signage is covered now because we don't want a visitor who is handicapped using that assigned stall."
Lau is in the process of determining who can qualify for a handicap stall. There is a "sudden request" for such stalls, he said, but applicants must have certification from their doctors. After those requests are dealt with, whatever stalls are left will be assigned to people requesting their first parking space, Lau said.
He is working on a master plan of the 19-acre complex (across from Mayor Wright Housing) to also accommodate residents who have two or three stalls.
Residents pay $40 per month for one stall and $80 per month each for second and third stalls.
Because of the second and third stalls, it's "not a simple fact of just moving cars around," he said. Still, he hopes to "be fully reasonable and operable with everybody" by the end of July.
Mahalo
To two men who stopped on the H-1, westbound, and to Mark for staying with us and taking us to Pearlridge so our daughter could pick us up after an accident on Tuesday night, June 20. I lost control of our car going townbound on the H-1 and it rolled over twice before landing right side up. No one was injured because we had the Hand of God protecting us. The two men (we did not get their names) offered us their cell phone and Mark stayed with us even though it made him late for work at Pearl Harbor in Network Management. Who says the Aloha Spirit is gone? God bless all three men and their families. -- Bob and Carol Miyashiro
Need help with problems? Call Kokua Line at 525-8686,
fax 525-6711, or write to P.O. Box 3080, Honolulu 96802.
Email to kokualine@starbulletin.com