Kokua Line
Kokua Line
City official was
borrowing car from HPDQuestion: I was recently following a city car and noticed that there was a "supercharged" emblem on the rear deck lid. Under what circumstances do the city procurement policies allow for agencies to opt for the "high-performance engine" when selecting options for their cars? Even if this was a "no-cost option," the increased gas consumption and maintenance costs usually associated with higher-performance engines would seem to have made this a bad management call.
Answer: The car was previously assigned to the Honolulu Police Department and was on loan to Ben Lee, the city's managing director.
Lee said he's had problems with his car, HPD had a spare, so "it was a lot cheaper to use the loaner for a while."
He said he uses the vehicle only for official business.
HPD Assistant Chief Karl Godsey explained that vehicles used by HPD must meet department specifications and be on an approved list that's screened first by a committee, then sent to the chief of police for final approval. Some alterations are allowed, but only within approved specifications.
Godsey said officers receive at least $450 a month to cover vehicle expenses, such as for installing radios and sirens. The vehicles also must have "certain performance abilities," he said.
"Usually, the wheelbase of a car is a factor," he said, and officers are given a gas allowance of about 9.5 to 10 miles per gallon, depending on whether they will use their vehicles for patrol, investigative or administrative duties.
Officers are allowed to make some alterations but cannot have such things as sunroofs, fancy racing rims or special decals. However, they are allowed "whatever you get as an engine from the manufacturer," Godsey said.
The car you cited did come with the supercharged engine from the manufacturer, as some are these days, he noted, and it fell within department specifications for a police vehicle.
In terms of mileage, Godsey said it boiled down to about a 1-mile-per-gallon difference.
More on Windward signs
In the May 21 "Kokua Line," a reader wanted to know who was responsible for the green-and-white highway signs along Kamehameha Highway that say "Drive with Aloha."The state Department of Transportation said it erected the signs at no charge after the community came up with the idea.
Sunny Greer, secretary-treasurer of the Koolauloa Neighborhood Board and a member of city Councilman Steve Holmes' staff, said Holmes' office helped initiate the Koolauloa Traffic Safety Coalition in response to numerous traffic fatalities and automobile accidents.
"The coalition conceived the idea of the signs to increase awareness of traffic safety, as well as inform motorists of the unique communities in Koolauloa," Greer said.
Kawika Eskaran of Kahuku designed and carved the signs, with the help of his family, Boys Scouts and woodworking shop students of Kahuku High & Intermediate School.
The signs were paid for by various community organizations.
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