OUR TOP ISSUES

1: Traffic fatality prompts closer look at five-way stop. Because of a recent traffic death, there's a look now at whether something needs to be done at the five-way stop in Manoa Valley because it is dangerous. People who live here know what to do to drive here safely and to take turns at the stop; historically there haven't been a lot of fatalities or major accidents here. But since the accident, the city has gotten a couple of complaints to look at what could be done here to make it safer, and an investigative team is reviewing it.

2: Parking for University of Hawaii students. When school is in session, all the parking in the area is taken up; street parking is nonexistent. There's really not much we can do about it, but the residents get concerned because of the congestion. And we're seeing a lot more incidents of theft and break-ins. So there's always a concern in that regard.

3: Flooding. The things that caused the bad flooding on Halloween Eve years ago haven't really been fixed. For now, the problem spots have been cleaned and there is more awareness, but if we had another incident like that one, with heavy rains backing up, we're at risk for flood again. Grass, debris, trash continually go into the stream and clog it up. The city, the state, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers—there was lot of pitching in to clear it up; maintenance has been good in the heavy, populated areas. But in areas where the stream banks are privately owned, there may be a little reluctance to clear their properties up to the middle of the stream.

BOARD NO. 7         THE OFFICERS         Chairman         John Kim         Vice chairmen         J. Thomas Heinrich and Eric Eads         Treasurer         Nadine Nishioka         Members         Fredrick Lee, Kendall Amazaki, Gary K. Andersen, Rodney Chun, Kimberly S. Case, Dwight N. Jackson, Martin Eby, Andrew Garrett, Kaleo Gagne, Milton Ragsdale and Robert Whitaker         TO GET INVOLVED: Monthly meetings are at Noelani Elementary School. Call 768-3710 or e-mail www. honolulu.gov/nco.

4: Coqui frogs. There are reports that there are now two, not just one, of the noisy frogs, and they're now being heard in the deep end of the valley. Since their sounds are coming from the old part of the valley, the concern is that the frogs are coming across from the Koolaus from the Waimanalo side. If that happens, this little frog is going to be hard to fight. And if it gets to the point that there is an infestation, and someone is trying to sell his home, that would have to be disclosed during the sale. That could translate to a 5 percent drop in property value. Once those frogs get established deep in the Koolaus, they'll be pretty hard to get rid of.

To try to keep on top of this, we're working with state Rep. Isaac Choy. The night security watch is working to fight the incidents of burglaries, and this is being tapped also as a way to counter the coqui frog. As the people walk around on security watch, they'll be asked to keep their eyes open for burglary, but also to keep ears open for the frogs.

5: Proposed cell-phone tower in middle of the Chinese cemetery. This happened a few years back. Since conducting a couple of meetings with some pretty major opposition, the application from the cell-phone company has been withdrawn. There may still be future attempts for an ugly cell tower in the valley, but they will be met with the same kind of resistance as last time.

SO SPECIAL

Manoa is central and well-served

What make our area so special? The climate for sure, because it is cooler. It's a quiet, residential neighborhood that's easily accessible to major city spots on Oahu: Waikiki, downtown, Kahala—they're all pretty much easy to get to. It's convenient and well-served by buses, police and fire personnel.

It's a community with a good reputation. It's a good place to live.

And people still tend to get along with each other; we have to convince people to start locking their doors now.

It's a neighborhood where people want to be, to remember what life was like 30 or 40 years ago. That's special.

Facts & Figures

» “;Manoa”; in Hawaiian means thick, solid or vast.

» The neighborhood includes houses built before the 1960s and low-rise condominiums.

» The University of Hawaii at Manoa, the UH system's flagship campus, is here. Other schools include the public Manoa and Noelani elementaries, and private Punahou School, Mid-Pacific Institute and Saint Francis School.