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Beach light deemed
unnecessary

Question: There are nightly meetings held at the "12 Coconuts" area at Queen's Beach in Waikiki. We have been sitting in the dark for three years. After Queen's Beach was renovated and reopened in 2002, the overhead light was never replaced. I asked the Harris administration to replace the light and was denied. I have e-mailed the Hannemann administration and have not received a response. It gets especially dark when the moon is not full. Could you please help us get an overhead light?

Answer: Unfortunately, no, because officials don't believe a light there is needed.

Based on your complaint, city parks officials re-evaluated that area and "it was again determined that extra lighting was not necessary."

The Kapiolani Regional Park staff had several discussions with the Alcoholics Anonymous and Narcotics Anonymous group coordinators during and after renovations to the "12 Coconuts" area regarding meetings there, explained Craig Mayeda, chief of the Department of Parks and Recreation's Parks Maintenance and Recreation Services Division.

"They were meeting to discuss the excessive wear and tear in the area," he said.

"The staff and coordinators came to an agreement that the AA and NA groups using the site at that time would conduct their nightly meetings in different areas of the park," he added.

Because of this agreement, Kapiolani Park staff felt that the lights were not needed.

That decision, as noted earlier, was recently reaffirmed.

Q: Recently, there was an abandoned car on the scenic turnout on the Windward side of the Pali, townbound, for about a week. It had been taken apart. I noticed it had a number on it. But shouldn't there be a way to remove a vehicle out of scenic areas more quickly? Also, if someone has an abandoned-vehicle notice put on their vehicle and they remove the notice without moving the car, how do police and motor vehicle inspectors deal with that?

A: A scenic location isn't considered a factor in removing abandoned vehicles -- only public safety is, according to Dennis Kamimura, administrator of the city Motor Vehicle & Licensing Division.

After a motor vehicle control inspector completes an investigation of an abandoned vehicle, the city's towing contractor is notified.

The contractor has seven days to remove the vehicle.

"If the vehicle affects public safety, we can request an expedited removal," Kamimura said. "Scenic locations are not normally considered a public safety issue."

The problem with an "expedited removal" is that it just means longer waits to remove other vehicles, he said.

Meanwhile, police and motor vehicle control inspectors know whether a vehicle has been moved by marking the tires, Kamimura said. If it hasn't been moved in more than 24 hours, it could be subject to towing.

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