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PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BURL BURLINGAME/BBURLINGAME@STARBULLETIN.COM We asked readers for suggestions on what to do with plain green utility boxes: A decorated false front facing the street.

Thinking outside the Box

Next: Historical markers

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By Burl Burlingame
bburlingame@starbulletin.com

They're square, they're green, they're mysterious, they're right out in the middle of public areas. They're utility access boxes. Necessary, I suppose, for utility workers to open once in a while and fiddle with. That's fine. But do they have to look the way they do? We asked Honolulu's creative citizens to suggest methods of either camouflaging the boxes or using them in an obvious manner.

Our own idea, from the rather shallow end of the Star-Bulletin think tank, is to use the boxes as pedestals for statues honoring heroes of the electrical age. Thomas Alva Edison, anyone? Nikola Tesla? Guglielmo Marconi? Reddy Kilowatt?

PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BURL BURLINGAME/BBURLINGAME@STARBULLETIN.COM A base for a statue of a great figure from electricity's history -- in this case, popular power company mascot Reddy Kilowatt.

First, some official word on why they look the way they do, from the helpful Jose Dizon of Hawaiian Electric:

"We can appreciate the desire to beautify the neighborhood by sprucing up 'those green boxes.' Many of the green boxes contain high-voltage equipment connected to underground power lines. The box color and warning symbols are uniform throughout the island so our trouble crews and the public can readily identify them. As much as people would like to plant shrubbery around them, the front of them has to remain completely accessible for repairs and maintenance. We do try to keep them free of unsightly graffiti. The public is asked to call HECO's Facilities Maintenance Division at 543-7370 if they see a green box that is covered with graffiti or that is rusted or unlocked."

One group of citizens who responded to our challenge was in favor of hiding or disguising the boxes:

"On the side facing the street, put a fake wooden cutout bush painted green, with hibiscus flowers painted on."

-- Inga Park Okuna, Honolulu

PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BURL BURLINGAME/BBURLINGAME@STARBULLETIN.COM A decorated false front facing the street.

"These hulking steel utility boxes found in parks and other locations around town can be covered with a flexible waterproof membrane and coated with a color quartz stone. Not only will this make these utility boxes pleasant to look at for both residents and tourists, but functionally the membrane would stop the rust and decay as it would be waterproof. Quartz stone is available in 14 colors and unlimited mixed colors, making it possible to blend in to their surrounding locations."

-- Kevin Bigelow, Waikiki

"We should make these steel utility boxes underground, like what they do with the sewer system. I have seen these utility boxes desecrated with graffiti and just dangerous for anyone to be sitting on them. To eliminate these (problems), put them underground with only authorized personnel allowed to go down there."

-- Flo Jay Daguio, Honolulu

"Plant shrubs around those hulking steel utility boxes found in parks and other locations around town. It's cheap, simple and effective."

-- Richard Personius, Kaimuki

"I cannot count how many countries I have been to when I mentioned that I live in Hawaii, people asked me if I lived in a house. Where have all the grass shacks gone? Why not cover these mystery boxes with little grass shacks so we can have something to show our grandchildren and tourists how we used to live? There's nothing very Hawaiian about seeing a corporate chain business every 30 feet."

-- Monica Lewis, Honolulu

PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BURL BURLINGAME/BBURLINGAME@STARBULLETIN.COM A recreation of a grass shack.

Another group saw the boxes as an opportunity to paint a social canvas:

"Cover them with Hawaiian art that blends with the environment."

-- Sharon Rich, Honolulu

"Have each high school place their best talents forward and come up with ideas of aloha and good will. Let the students decorate them. Include the universities and elementary and intermediate schools. Let the community participate in making the community a brighter place."

-- Jon Dice, Honolulu

"Have Ron Artis or Wyland do their ocean mural painting on the utility boxes."

-- Michael Nomura, Kailua

"Do what has been done in Brisbane, Australia. Employ graffiti artists to paint scenes that blend in with the background on the steel boxes. (This) creates employment, gives the graffiti artists a new sense of direction and disguises those horrible steel utility boxes."

-- Lionel L. Sharp, Queensland, Australia

"Simple! Commission local artists to paint them nicely. Come to Kailua Beach Park and you will see what I mean. A picture is worth a thousand words."

-- J. Mitchell, Kailua

"Paint each box with a different color and pattern. Slap an expensive-looking brass plaque below each box identifying it as 'art.' When one of the boxes gets replaced, auction the art to some fool for lots of money to offset the painting and plaque-making costs."

-- Dennis K. Biby, Sand Island

"Invite elementary and middle-school students to cover the boxes with the kind of wonderful and colorful art that only our na keiki can produce! Then pray that so-called 'graffiti artists' won't desecrate the art with their garbage."

-- Judith W. Franz

And there were others who saw the scattered boxes as a medium for other types of expression:

"Enclose the steel utility boxes with the gnomon of a sundial. Sundials should be a practical addition to any outdoor park."

-- Alvin Wong, Pearl City

"Mount historical plaques on each utility box. On the plaque, create a unique symbol that can be copied with a pencil rubbing. The (Hawaii Visitors & Convention Bureau) could publish a 'history walk' guide for tourists. Pubs and restaurants could sponsor scavenger hunts where contestants use clues to find the correct historic spot. The first contestant tocollect the rubbings in the correct order wins."

-- Dennis K. Biby, Sand Island

"Paint them red, white and blue and designate them as official 'soap box' platforms where people can exercise their First Amendment right to free speech. Call them a vocal alternative to letters to the editor."

-- Ann Ruby, Honolulu

"How about if you encase them on three sides with lava walls and install a dark wooden or metal door for access by utility workers? Then you could plant vines on top that would grow down.

"Or install kiosk-style display boards that speak of the unique features of that particular park or view, or allow local artists and performers to post notices of upcoming performances. They could be a good place to place trash receptacles or benches, or plant unique species of native Hawaiian shore plants with a plaque explaining their origin. Or (they could) even plumb a shower head for rinsing."

-- Jeffrey S. LeFebvre, Honolulu

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[ BRAINSTORM! ] Historical markers? Other cities have permanent markers signifying historic sites or locations. Shouldn't Hawaii be equally accommodating to students and visitors? What should such markers look like in Honolulu? Design one! Remember, markers on walls require the owner's permission, but markers in the sidewalk belong to the city. Send your ideas, drawings and solutions by Thursday, November 13 to: brainstorm@starbulletin.com Or mail them to: Brainstorm! c/o Burl Burlingame Star-Bulletin 500 Ala Moana 7 Waterfront Plaza, Suite 210 Honolulu, Hawaii 96813 Fax: Brainstorm! c/o Burl Burlingame 529-4750