Elected officials must oppose development
Enough is enough! We do not want the North Shore sold out to developers. It is ludicrous to even entertain Oaktree Capital's proposed development. It goes against all common sense that you would go into a rural community and build more hotel/condo units than there are residences in that entire community. And all this is based on a 20-year-old Environmental Impact Statement.
I have attended three informational meetings with Oaktree Capital representatives and not one elected official has been in attendance. Where are City Councilman Donovan Dela Cruz and Rep. Michael Magaoay? They asked for our votes and to be the representatives of the North Shore. So where are they now when we need their representation and support?
I will hold responsible all elected city and state officials who sit by and assist with this slam-dunk by lack of action and silence on the issue. I will vote you out of office at the first opportunity.
Jack T. Lutey
36-year North Shore resident
What beaches will be saved for families?
Once again our elected policy-makers are at a crossroads to either develop a large stretch of Hawaii coastline for the tourist industry or preserve it for the keiki o ka aina. On Oahu, Kawela is the farthest place away from Waikiki both geographically and in spirit.
If we want to get away from crowds and commercialization, where can we go? So many of our prime coastlines have been desecrated by the visitor industry that now even tourists are seeking out vacation rentals in neighborhoods to get away from the hotels. If that isn't a sign we are killing the goose that laid the golden egg, what is?
The law of supply and demand rules, which means that there is huge value today, and will be greater value in the future, in leaving land the way our creator intended it to be. Never mind that for parents, it is almost impossible to take our kids to an undeveloped beach but more to the point our culture of throw net and surfboard is being replaced by golf carts and Rolexes. Stop building hotels.
Toby Morris
Kailua
Youths' good actions overcome the bad
Youths planning killings on the mainland and recent destructive graffiti vandals make headlines.
In contrast, the recognition to those outstanding journalism students at Waianae High School, local talented musicians performing in national radio show "From the Top," and Michelle Wie's model maturity and charity certainly warm the heart and project hope for the future that these young people offer us.
Now I think of them instead, as I roll up my car window, shielding irrational noise and garble from the senses.
Thanks, guys!
Sid Gurtiza
Wahiawa
Homeless appreciate being listened to
Welcome and thank you all from the voice of the houseless, Ohana 'O Hawaii. Without your utmost professional awareness we would be no further along on our quest to be a part of the homeless equation.
Today is the rising of Ohana 'O Hawaii. A small council from the homeless community here, to sit down to listen to all meetings and discussion on this matter. We stand together here today -- not to be a problem for our leaders in our government, but as a piece of the puzzle that can be joined together as a complete picture to raise the state's awareness of this issue.
Once more, may we pray and bless all who are involved in this matter, so that we can always feel comfortable about approaching any person about this issue, and feel we are left out and looking in on the shining light that Ku Akua has in store for all his children on Earth.
So we join together as the great people of the state of Hawaii. Because we all are Hawaiians in Ku Akua's eyes. Everyone!
Rudy Peralta
Ohana 'O Hawaii
Creating more roads is not the answer
More roads only encourage more people to drive ("Double toll road is added to the transit mix,"
Star-Bulletin, April 18). The whole idea of solving our traffic problem is to take cars OFF the road, not put more on or simply giving people another way to drive to work.
I would venture to say that more than 80 percent of the cars on the H-1 to and from work are carrying only one person. That means that for every person who uses a transit system, one car is taken off the roads. Even if only 5,000 people take mass transit, potentially 5,000 cars are taken off the roads. On top of that, paying to use the road will not encourage anyone to use it! More roads are not the answer to the traffic problem -- a comprehensive transit system that moves people efficiently en masse is. Let's do it right this time.
Steven Fukunaga
Mililani
Get ready for peanuts and Cracker Jack
I walk every morning in shorts and a T-shirt. My favorite T-shirt has a wonderful logo of a fiery baseball -- the West Oahu Canefires. Your
article Thursday about a new Hawaii Winter Baseball league tells me why: It is sensational good news.
What a glorious experience that Hawaii Winter League was for too few years. Even though Major League Baseball wouldn't support them the way they always did in the Caribbean and Latin America, Hawaii Winter League put on a class act without MLB's help (competing interests, you know).
One of the smarter things state government did was to see the plus in the whole deal and step in to back them up.
So, bring it on. I want my season tickets NOW!
Patrick Stanley
Honolulu
City moved quickly on blocked drain
I know the city gets many complaints about various things, but I believe few people bother to thank them for a job well done.
Early this month I complained about bushes growing in the main storm drain on our street. Given the amount of rain recently and perhaps to come, this brush could well back up water on to the street, or dislodge the brush down the storm drain which would block the drainage further down the valley. Within weeks the city people came and cleaned the drain. All the residents of the area want to thank Mr. Hubert Minn and the staff of the Customer Service department for the prompt response.
Grace Furukawa
Manoa