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Kokua Line
Question: It's been almost two months since I contacted the state and city, the Board of Water Supply, etc., regarding work on the water line on Kahekili Highway. Why can't the work be done at night? I was told the contractor needs to get a permit, that they were going to do it next week, and next week and so on. Meanwhile, traffic is bumper to bumper all the way from Haiku Road to Valley of the Temples. Kahekili work
prohibitively costly
at nightAnswer: It looks like there won't be any night work on the $13 million project because, at this point, the contractor says it would be too costly.
RCI Construction Group Pacific was awarded the Board of Water Supply contract to install the water main between Haiku Road and Hui Iwa Street. It applied for a night-work variance with the Department of Health on Aug. 31, said Derrick Cosier, RCI's operations manager.
Although RCI based its bid on doing the work during the day, it would have liked to have done some work at night, because the job could be done more quickly at night, he said.
The Health Department approved the permit Dec. 8, he said, but by then, "we were already 30-some-odd days into the project."
The permit then had to be approved by the state Department of Transportation and the Board of Water Supply.
Agency spokeswoman Denise DeCosta said although this is a Board of Water Supply project, the contractor is responsible for obtaining all necessary permits.
Cosier noted that by Dec. 8, more than 2,400 feet of the approximate 6,000-foot-long pipe had been installed. By Dec. 18, when the Department of Transportation mandated a two-week holiday hiatus on all road work, more than half the work was completed.
As of last week, approval was still pending with the Transportation Department, but became moot.
"It gets to the point where it doesn't make (economic) sense, especially when the contractor has to bear the cost," Cosier said. "The associated costs (to working at night) are above and beyond what we can afford."
Asked why it took so long to approve RCI's permit, Health Department spokeswoman Janice Okubo said it normally would take 60 to 90 days for the department to process a variance for night work, taking into consideration the noise and the impact on neighboring homes and businesses.
"This was not a normal situation," she said, noting officials tried to expedite the process by not requiring a public hearing or a 30-day notice for such a hearing.
Instead, the minutes of a Kahaluu Neighborhood Board meeting when the project was discussed were accepted.
Okubo also said the original application was not accompanied by a fee, so processing of the permit did not begin until the fee came in, on Oct. 2. On Oct. 6, officials asked for a clarification of the application, which was received Oct. 23.
The neighborhood board meeting's minutes followed on Nov. 9. On Nov. 21, more information was requested and was received Nov. 27. Okubo said approval was given Nov. 30.
"From a personal point of view -- I'm a motorist, too -- I'd like to get the work done at night," Cosier said. "But there are a lot of logistics involved with performing work at night that the general public doesn't realize."
Meanwhile, it will take another 30 to 60 "business" days to install the pipe.
Mahalo
To the state Department of Transportation for their Christmas gift of putting road construction on hold during the week of Christmas. It was a much-appreciated gift. -- C.H.
Need help with problems? Call Kokua Line at 525-8686,
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