Help Our Community Thrive -- Join The Volunteer Team For The Kaneohe Neighborhood Board

Times are changing for the Kaneohe Neighborhood Board, but one thing remains the same: We welcome volunteers.

The changing times involve the end of the current two-year Board term and the departure of some of our valued colleagues.

The term ends June 30, and we will be saying goodbye to the following Board members:

Warren Ditch – At Large

Felipe San Nicolas – At Large

Marie Gavigan – Sub-District 1, Ali’I Landing/Ali’I Shores

Holly Sevier – Sub-District 3, Haiku Village/Plantations

Stuart Saito – Sub-District 4, Keahala

With the beginning of the 2017-19 Board term on July 1, we will welcome two new Board members:

            Daniel Kaanana – At Large

            Lora Burbage -- Sub-District 4, Keahala

MANY OPPORTUNITIES TO SERVE

Daniel, Lora and our departing Board colleagues are all volunteers. They give their time to help keep our community the amazing place that it is. And you can help, too.

For example, five Board seats had no candidates in the recent election and will be unfilled when the new Board term begins. The sub-districts are:

Sub-District 1 -- Ali’I Landing/Ali’I Shores

Sub-District 2 -- Crown Terrace

Sub-District 3 -- Haiku Village/Plantations

Sub-District 5 -- Lilipuna/Kahanahou

Sub-District 6 -- Waikalua

The recently elected Board members will be authorized to fill those seats by appointment after their terms begin.

JOIN A COMMITTEE

If serving on the Board isn’t your thing, then please consider helping out on one of the Board’s committees. We currently have three special committees and 13 standing committees. 

As an example of the volunteer opportunities they offer, consider this announcement from the Community Engagement Committee:

VOLUNTEER NEEDED

The Community Engagement Committee of the Kaneohe Neighborhood Board is seeking a communications volunteer. This person will coordinate with the committee to develop content for the Board’s blog, Facebook page and news media. The volunteer also will meet with other committee members on a regular basis to plan communication messages, strategies and new directions for the Board’s community engagement work. Contact Bill Sager at 808-375-1114.

Or, maybe one of the committees below will appeal more:

SPECIAL COMMITTEES: Haiku Stairs Special Task Force, Emergency Management Planning Committee, State Legislative Monitoring Committee.

STANDING COMMITTEES: State Legislature Committee, City and County Ordinance Committee, Public Health and Safety Committee, Safety Committee, Planning Committee, Transportation Committee, Education Committee, Environmental Committee, Windward Civilian/Military Committee, OMPO Citizen Advisory Committee, Kaneohe Bay Regional Council, Homelessness Committee, Hawaii State Hospital.

To learn more about opportunities for volunteers, contact our current Board Chairman, Mo Radke, or attend a Board meeting. We meet at 7 p.m. on the third Thursday of every month in the cafeteria of Benjamin Parker Elementary School, 45-259 Waikalua Road.

We look forward to seeing you there.

News about our June 15 meeting, from KITV:

Neighborhood board supports

resolution to keep Haiku Stairs

The Kaneohe neighborhood board voted in support of a resolution that would reopen the popular Haiku Stairs, under a controlled and managed access plan, on Thursday.

"All the board is asking and that's what this resolution is asking... is that the option that's preferred in the EIS is a managed access plan not demolition," chair of the Kaneohe Neighborhood Board, Mo Radke said.

Click here for the full text of the news report.

Board Chairman Mo Radke (left) comments on resolution.

Nursing Facility, Zoning Change And Haiku Stairs On Agenda For Kaneohe Neighborhood Board

The agenda is set for our meeting on Thursday, June 15, and we hope you will join us. Details are below. To review the complete agenda online, click on this link.

Avalon Health Care Group: A representative will present information about a proposed skilled nursing facility to be built on Hawaii State Hospital property. The facility is planned for 5 acres adjacent to Windward Community College. Avalon representatives told our agenda planning meeting that the facility will have 150 beds. They said it will provide skilled nursing care for a mix of elderly, medically complex and non-violent psychiatric patients.  Representatives told our meeting that the facility is expected to create 290 jobs during a 14-month construction period, followed by 168 fulltime staff jobs. The project still must receive state approval. (Corrected from original version, which said federal approval also was required.)

Zone Change: Richard Maruya is scheduled to present information about a zone change he is requesting for property at 44-740 Kaneohe Bay Drive. The Bay Drive Market currently occupies the site. Mr. Maruya  told our agenda planning meeting that he wants to change the zoning from an R-5 residential designation to B-2, which is for businesses serving several neighborhoods.

Haiku Stairs: We are scheduled to consider a resolution about the future of the stairs. The Board of Water Supply, which manages the stairs, is developing an environmental impact statement focused on removing them. Our May meeting included extensive testimony from community members who favor removal and those who favor preserving the stairs for hiking.  In a commentary about the meeting, Neighborhood Board Chairman Mo Radke wrote that he supports a managed access plan as a way to preserve hiking opportunities while relieving the neighborhood near the base of the stairs from persistent disruptions by trespassing hikers.

Other Business: Our agenda always includes time for reports from the Fire and Police Departments, Marine Corps Base Hawaii, elected officials from the state and local levels, community organizations, and our Board committees.

Details: The Board meeting will take place in the cafeteria of Benjamin Parker Elementary School, 45-259 Waikalua Road, starting at 7 p.m. Click on this link to read the full agenda and find more information about agenda topics. Also, the minutes of our May meeting are now available. Click on the highlighted link to read them.

We welcome your comments, in person and online

Please join us for all of our meetings. The agenda always includes time for comments by community members. If you are unable to attend, you may provide testimony online and contact Neighborhood Board members directly.

Comments on this blog are welcomed. To add a comment, please click on the link below. Also, please like us on Facebook and comment there.

Chairman's Commentary: Vital Topics, Respectful Discussions Marked Our May Board Meeting

By: Mo Radke

Mo Radke is the Chairman of the Kaneohe Neighborhood Board.

Aloha mai kakou –

At the May 2017 meeting of the Kaneohe Neighborhood Board, I was honored to preside over a meeting attended by over 200 community members who shared their concerns and support for some important community topics.

Serenity Gardens Cemetery Proposal was presented to the community planned for a plot of land in Puohala Village.  A question and answer period followed and was met with over 70 online petition responses and 6 personal phone calls to board members and a number of residents in attendance opposing the development.   The board voted to send their opposition to the plan to the appropriate city departments.

Hawaiian Memorial Park (HMP) presented an “idea” a few months ago during a community meeting at the Pali golf course.  At last night’s meeting HMP presented a completely new plan incorporating the concerns of the community from the golf course meeting.  While the plan is still in a draft stage, the board did not introduce any motions for action and will continue to ask HMP to provide more permanent plans as they are developed. 

1.        Rain water runoff appears to be the major concern of the residents

2.       The Koolaupoko Civic Club submitted a letter of support for the HMP plan and testified in support.

3.       People generally were pleased with the HMP historic preservation aspects of the heiau and other culturally sensitive sites.

4.       Opponents cite the water runoff problems as critical – the board would like to hear from engineers regarding this concern before making a decision to support the expansion plan.

5.       The previous expansion plan no longer exists – this is an entirely new plan representing the community concerns of the residents and a more controlled expansion for HMP. 

6.       Perpetuity clauses are inserted to ensure the expansion sites remain cared for even when the cemetery “sells out”.

Haiku Stairs: With 10 minutes left in the meeting and still a Haiku Stairs decision-making section remaining – along with about 50 residents, the board agreed to extend the meeting and allow introduction of the resolution and discussion.  Voting on the resolution would be deferred to the June meeting.  The discussion lasted until 10 pm. 

I want to thank the board and the community for representing their views with balance and respect and trying to keep emotional pleas and outbursts to a minimum.

G70, a planning group, is contracted by the Board of Water Supply to complete an Environmental Impact Statement with the option of removing the stairs, turning over the stairs to another entity, allowing a managed access plan or doing nothing.  Public input is due by May 23. 

To read about the EIS, use this link: http://www.boardofwatersupply.com/community/haiku-stairs

To submit testimony, send an email to:  haikustairs@g70.design

Presently, the EIS process is in the preliminary stage, input from the stakeholders will help to inform the DRAFT EIS which should follow soon after.  

For and against issues have not changed; Opponents continue to have their property rights trampled by trespassers, literally, by those who follow online trespassing instructions and continue to park-and-walk in the neighborhood during many different times at night to try and avoid an ineffectual security guard situation which does not deter trespassing onto both private and BWS property.

Proponents continue to tout the majesty of the stairs as a local, national and spiritual treasure, the connection to the WWII and significance as a critical communications site, the opportunity explore, study and educate and potential partnerships that remove and prohibit access from within the Haiku neighborhood and moves it to another access point.

Chair’s Editorial Comments: Passion for a topic usually evokes passion of voice.  Passion in voice usually places positions of opposing views apart from each other.  So how do opposing sides meet somewhere where the process can move forward? 

Presently, the community residents will not budge on their position to have anything other than total removal of the stairs as that action, they believe, will totally remove the trespassers because there are no more stairs to climb. Groups wanting to reopen the stairs claim that a controlled and managed access plan will force hikers to properly register and report to a “base station” before hiking the stairs. This entity would be accountable for their business operations to collect a fee to support the maintenance, hire staff to monitor activity on the stairs and protect its investment by seeking to eliminate trespassers to the stairs.

Landowners like Department of Hawaiian Homelands, BWS and Kamehameha Schools are not interested in allowing access – and why should they?  What is the benefit to those organizations allowing access across a portion of their property without a proven plan to remove their liability or conduct an action not related to their kuleana. 

Since these are editorial comments, an OPINION, I offer the following: I believe a managed access plan should be tried on a small scale to see if the Haiku neighborhood at the stairs can be relieved of trespassers.  An entity such as Friends of Haiku stairs should either supervise the access plan or implement the plan themselves and purchase insurance to indemnify the landowners during the test period.  I also think it would be an awesome gesture on behalf of the proponents of reopening to assist the residents with the neighborhood watch program in the wee hours of the morning to help get the word out to the online hiking blogs that “how-to” to get onto the stairs no longer works.  Partnerships and collaboration between the parties may build the needed trust and momentum that’s needed.  Something of substance is needed now!

More than 200 community members attended our May meeting. They
shared their views with balance and respect. -- Donald Dawson photo

‘Safety First’ Ordinance For Funding Sidewalks Discussed At Neighborhood Board Meeting

Should there be a “safety first” ordinance for funding sidewalks on our island? That’s the question Kaneohe Neighborhood Board member Mahealani Cypher asked at our January meeting.

Speakers at the meeting said current ordinances treat sidewalks as property improvements that should be approved by a majority of the affected property owners and partially funded by all of them. That can make funding construction difficult even where there is a clear safety risk to residents who walk or use wheelchairs.

Mahealani Cypher

Ms. Cypher said that the walkway along Waikalua Road hasn’t been improved since she used it to get to school as a child 40 years ago. She said that the safety of residents is clearly affected by the condition of the walkway and that the city needs a better way to make it safe.

The issue came up when residents on Waikalua Road expressed concern about the poor condition of the street and the paved walkway next to it. The street is riddled with potholes and the walkway is crumbling and narrow.

The street had been scheduled for resurfacing in November, but the work has not begun. A representative of the Mayor’s Office, Lori Kahikina, told the meeting that she will look into the plans for repaving but that there are no plans for sidewalk improvements.

Ms. Kahikina, the city’s Director of Environmental Services, said that the city ordinance will need to change before the city can fund sidewalks for safety reasons. Francisco Figueiredo, a representative of City Councilman Ikaika Anderson, noted that adding sidewalks can take away parking spaces, which are important for many residents.

Neighborhood Board Chairman Mo Radke encouraged residents to fill out a complaint form, which he would forward to the city for investigation.

For more information: Click here and scroll to Section 18 to review the city sidewalk ordinance. Click here to explore the city’s road repaving map and project list.

We Welcome Your Comments, In Person And Online

Please join us for all of our meetings. If you are unable to attend, you may provide testimony online and contact Neighborhood Board members directly.  

Comments on this blog are welcomed. To add a comment, please click on the link below. Also, please like us on Facebook and comment there.

He’eia Wetlands, Voting By Mail, Homelessness Are On Kaneohe Neighborhood Board Agenda

The agenda is set for our meeting on Thursday, January 19, and we hope you will join us. Details are below. To review the complete agenda online, click on this link.

He’eia Wetlands: A representative of the He'eia Community Development District is scheduled to brief us on plans to restore this environmental and historic treasure. The Legislature created the district in 2011 to facilitate culturally appropriate agriculture, education and natural-resource restoration and management” of the wetlands. At our last meeting, Board Chairman Mo Radke urged the Governor’s Office to seek state funding to support a related project, the He‘eia National Estuarine Research Reserve. That project has developed a management plan for an area that includes the wetlands, but state funding is needed for the project to go forward.

Election By Mail: Board member Nancy Davlantes is scheduled to present a resolution asking the Legislature to establish a voting system that relies primarily on mailed-in ballots. Lawmakers are expected to introduce a bill to that effect this year, along with one that would set up automatic voter registration. Common Cause Hawaii, an advocate for the legislation, says that more than half of ballots cast in Hawaii during the 2016 general election were mailed in. The group says the state could save money and increase participation by moving to a vote-by-mail system.

Other Business: We also are scheduled to have a discussion about homelessness. And our agenda always includes time for reports from the Fire and Police Departments, Marine Corps Base Hawaii, elected officials from the state and local levels, community organizations, and our Board committees.

Vacant Seats: Three seats are currently open on the Board. They represent Sub-District 4, Keahala; Sub-District 8, Kapunahala; and Sub-District 12, Pikoiloa. The Board is authorized to fill vacancies by appointment. Community members may indicate their interest by contacting Board Chairman Mo Radke or by attending a Board meeting. A map of the district is available online, as is a street index that is organized by sub-district (search for District 30 in the index, then find the sub-district).

Details: The Board meeting will take place in the cafeteria of Benjamin Parker Elementary School, 45-259 Waikalua Road, starting at 7 p.m. 

Click on the highlighted links above to read the full agenda and find more information about agenda topics. The minutes of our December meeting also are now available. Click on the highlighted link to read them.

We welcome your comments, in person and online

Please join us for all of our meetings. If you are unable to attend, you may provide testimony online and contact Neighborhood Board members directly.

Comments on this blog are welcomed. To add a comment, please click on the link below. Also, please like us on Facebook and comment there.

State Hospital Developments Are Reviewed At Kaneohe Neighborhood Board Meeting

We heard an informative report about developments at the Hawaii State Hospital during our December meeting. Details are below. Click on the highlighted links for more information.

Public Input Sought: Neighborhood Board Chairman Mo Radke reminded us that a draft environmental impact statement about the hospital’s development plans is available for review and comment. The deadline for submitting comments is January 9, 2017. The document outlines plans for a new patient care facility that is to be built in the next two to three years. It also details longer term plans for at least three new patient care facilities and a warehouse-operations facility. The development is needed to address crowding and deteriorating facilities and the hospital’s Kaneohe campus.

William May.

Goddard Building Removal: State Hospital Administrator William May told us that removal of 11,000 tons of debris from the demolished Goddard Building was completed on December 15. The demolition makes way for construction of the new patient care facility mentioned above. That project is expected to start in 2018. Built in 1947, the Goddard Building had deteriorated to the point that it had not been used in more than two decades. The Legislature has appropriated $160 million to build its replacement.

Security: Mr. May told us that the hospital has added security features since the escape and recapture of a patient shortly before Halloween. He said security screens have been added to the building where the escape took place and one other. He also said security features have been adjusted to prevent escapes. 

Person Of The Year Award And Holiday Potluck Top Agenda For Kaneohe Neighborhood Board

Please join us for a very special meeting of the Kaneohe Neighborhood Board on Thursday, December 15. Help us honor our Person of the Year for 2016 and then join us for our annual holiday potluck.

The meeting will be held in the cafeteria of Benjamin Parker Elementary School, starting at 7 p.m. We’ll begin with our regular business agenda.

Then at about 7:45, we’ll present the Person of the Year award. This honor goes to a Kaneohe resident who sets a high standard of service and aloha for our community.

Our 2015 Person of the Year
receives her award. Join us this
week to honor our 2016 winner.

Read about last year’s winner, Patty Yamashiro-Hironaka, on our website. And prepare to be inspired by the honoree for 2016.

Shortly after the award presentation, we’ll adjourn and start the potluck. Besides tasty food, the potluck is a great opportunity to meet Neighborhood Board members, elected officials and community members. 

Also learn about our major projects and how you can become more active in our community.  Kaneohe is blessed by many organizations working to make it an even more livable community.  

You Neighborhood Board is the Community Liaison to all levels of Government (check out the minutes of our November meeting for some examples).  When you have a problem, or if you are aware of anything we can do to make Kaneohe an even better place to live, bring it to your Neighborhood Board. 

Vacant Seats & Upcoming Election: Three seats are currently open on the Board. They represent Sub-District 4, Keahala; Sub-District 8, Kapunahala; and Sub-District 12, Pikoiloa. The Board is authorized to fill vacancies by appointment. Community members may indicate their interest by contacting Board Chairman Mo Radke or by attending a Board meeting.

Also, the 2017 Neighborhood Board elections will take place April 28 through May 19. All 17 seats on our Board will be up for election. Registration forms and other information about becoming a candidate are available online.

We welcome your comments, in person and online

Please join us for all of our meetings. If you are unable to attend, you may provide testimony online and contact Neighborhood Board members directly.

Comments on this blog are welcomed. To add a comment, please click on the link below. Also, please like us on Facebook and comment there.

Kaneohe Neighborhood Board Seeks Candidates To Give Voice To Their Great Community

Does a community have a voice? We believe it does. And we are working to make the voice of Kaneohe heard.

Unfortunately, we aren’t at full strength to achieve that goal right now. Here’s why: Instead of a complete Neighborhood Board of 17 members, we have three unfilled seats.

That shortage reduces the range of opinions that go into our decisions and makes it harder to achieve a majority of nine votes, as required under city rules.

What you can do

There are two ways you can help ensure that all voices are heard.

One is to volunteer to fill one of the seats that are currently unfilled.

Another is to register as a candidate for the 2017 Neighborhood Board election, to keep the Board at full strength for the long term.

But first some background

Our Board represents District 30 in the Honolulu Neighborhood Commission classification system. The Board is made up of three at-large seats and 14 seats serving specific sub-districts. Our online map shows the territory covered by District 30. To find out what sub-district you live in, visit our street index.

We hold an agenda planning meeting the first Tuesday of each month at 7 p.m. at the Kaneohe Community and Senior Center, 45-613 Puohala Street. We hold our regular business meeting on the third Thursday of each month at 7 p.m. at Benjamin Parker Elementary School, 45-259 Waikalua Road.

Our meetings are open forums where residents can learn about what’s going on in our community and bring their concerns directly to the attention of government representatives and elected officials. Board members are volunteers with one goal in mind: Helping our neighbors.

How to fill an unfilled seat
We currently have three open Board seats, whose terms run through June 2017. They represent Sub-District 6, Waikalua; Sub-District 8, Kapunahala; and Sub-District 12, Pikoiloa. To find out what sub-district you live in, visit our online map and street index.

The Board is authorized to fill vacancies by appointment. Community members may indicate their interest by contacting Board Chairman Mo Radke or by attending a Board meeting.

How to become a candidate for 2017

The 2017 Neighborhood Board elections will take place April 28 through May 19. All 17 seats on our Board will be up for election. Any Oahu resident who will be at least 18 years of age by February 17, 2017 is eligible to be a candidate.

Starting December 1, 2016, candidates may register online or submit a Candidate Declaration Form to the Neighborhood Commission Office (NCO). The form must be hand delivered to the NCO or postmarked by February 17, 2017.  Assistance is available by calling 768-3781.

We welcome your comments, in person and online

Comments on this blog are welcomed. To add a comment, please click on the link below. Also, please like us on Facebook and join us for all of our meetings. If you are unable to attend, you may provide testimony online and contact Neighborhood Board members directly.

On The Bay And On The Air, Nonprofit Groups Spur Talk At Kaneohe Neighborhood Board Meeting

Nonprofit groups were a topic of conversation during our October 20 meeting. Here’s a report. 

Kaneohe Bay Regional Council: Our chairman, Mo Radke, reported on the Council’s deliberations over a company with ties to the nonprofit group Kama’aina Kids.

The company, Holokai Kayak and Snorkel Adventures, offers guided and self-guided tours of the bay. Holokai’s website says that the firm serves 5,000 customers a year from He’eia State Park and that the programs it offers are educational. The website says Holokai’s revenues support Kama’aina Kids’ operations. Kama’aina Kids operates the state park and a range of childcare programs that serve 9,700 children and families island-wide.

Board Chairman Mo Radke

Mr. Radke represents the Neighborhood Board on the Council. He reported that the Council has concluded that Holokai Tours is a commercial entity because it markets its services to adult tourists and that it should cease commercial operations on the bay. He also said that a Council committee recommended that the Council define the terms “commercial” and “educational” as they apply to activities on the bay. (A report by the committee includes more details).

The Council is a state-chartered group that provides guidance on public use and protection of Kaneohe Bay. The group’s focus is the Kaneohe Bay Master Plan, which encourages limits on commercial use of the bay.

PSA’s for NPO’s: We learned about this program from Donna Ylen, manager of the Windward Community Media Center, a division of Olelo Community Media based at King Intermediate School. She said Media Center staff will produce a public service announcement on request for local nonprofit groups.

Recording times are offered on the first Thursday of each month. Interested groups should develop a short message about themselves and then email windward@olelo.org to schedule a recording time.

City Grants for Nonprofits: City Councilman Ikaika Anderson told us that the deadline is approaching for local nonprofits to apply for grants of up to $125,000. He said each City Council district must receive at least $250,000 in nonprofit grants each year.

Grant proposals are due to the City by 2 p.m. on Monday, November 14. An online application is available on the City’s Division of Purchasing website.

Comments Welcome: Please join us for all of our meetings. If you are unable to attend, you may provide testimony online and contact Neighborhood Board members directly. Comments on this blog are welcomed. To add a comment, please click on the link below. Also, please like us on Facebook and comment there.

Note: To see an earlier report on our October meeting, click here.

Homelessness, Vacation Rentals, Charter Changes Topics At Kaneohe Neighborhood Board Meeting

Our September 15 meeting was busy. Here’s a quick look at some important developments. To see our earlier reports from the meeting, click here and here.

Windward Homelessness: City Councilman Ikaika Anderson talked with us about options that are being considered for housing Oahu’s homeless. He said the city sees promise in a “housing first” approach, in which homeless people are provided with housing before they begin receiving medical, psychiatric, legal and other services. Many current programs for the homeless require that they receive treatment before they are housed.

One housing first option is opening a multi-unit shelter to provide both housing and services. Councilman Anderson asked the Neighborhood Board what it would think of the city locating a multi-unit shelter for the homeless in Kaneohe. Board member Deborah Collins asked the councilman to provide a map of city-owned properties that might be used for the project.

Councilman Anderson also said he would consider an approach in which the city would provide financial support to landlords to open individual properties for homeless clients. He said this might enable Windward residents to help homeless people who are family members or friends.

Unpermitted Vacation Rentals: Mayors’ representative Lori Kahikina said that funds are running short for the city to investigate vacation rentals to determine if they meet city requirements. She urged residents to provide detailed information about possible violations to help inspectors be more efficient. An estimated 4,000 to 5,000 unpermitted vacation rentals operate on Oahu.

City Charter Amendments: We voted 12-0 on a resolution asking the City Charter Commission to inform the public about each of the 20 Charter amendments that it has put on the November election ballot. The vote came after we voted to add the topic to our agenda. The commission has the language of each measure and a description on its website at http://honoluluchartercommission.org/.

NEW BANNERS: Board Chairman Mo Radke and Board Member Warren Ditch display one of two new banners promoting our monthly meetings. Watch for the banners at Benjamin Parker Elementary School and the corner of Kamehameha Highway and Keaahala Road. 

Comments Welcome: Please join us for all of our meetings. If you are unable to attend, you may provide testimony online and contact Neighborhood Board members directly. Comments on this blog are welcomed. To add a comment, please click on the link below. Also, please like us on Facebook and comment there.

Residents Approach Kaneohe Neighborhood Board For Assistance With Dangerous Traffic

Speeding cars and narrow streets don’t mix. That was the message our Board received at its August 18 business meeting.

Residents of the Puohala neighborhood shared their concerns about an increasing number of drivers using Pua Alowalo Street as a shortcut and thrill ride. Resident Carol Lee said the street has a dangerous curve and hill, and has been the site of at least 5 accidents recently.

She said the speeding cars are a threat to the neighborhood’s numerous pedestrians, who walk on the roadway because it has no sidewalks. The walkers include senior citizens, residents in wheelchairs and schoolchildren.

Ms. Lee asked that police increase enforcement on the street, and a police representative at the meeting said he would have officers monitor the area. Ms. Lee also asked that the city add a traffic calming installation such as speed bumps on the street. She said a neighborhood petition shows that 90 percent of residents support those actions.

In response to a question, Ms. Lee said most of the speeding occurs after school lets out. She said that some of the traffic is coming from the Windward City Shopping Center, as drivers seek a quick route back to the Kamehameha Highway. The center has an entrance from the highway but no direct exit. Drivers leaving the center must navigate long lines, u-turns or backtracking through potholed streets to get back on the Kam. Pua Alowalo Street offers a convenient shortcut.

Board members talked at the meeting about forming a work group to investigate long-term solutions for the traffic issue. Board Chairman Mo Radke, member Deborah Collins and several Puohala residents said they would like to be members of the group. The Board plans to consider forming the group at its next meeting on September 15.

More To Come: Our August meeting also included discussion of legislation, the Kaneohe Community Garden, homelessness and more. Watch this blog for updates soon.

Meeting Minutes are available by clicking on this link.

Vacant Seats: Two seats are currently open on the Board. They represent Sub-District 8, Kapunahala; and Sub-District 12, Pikoiloa.The Board is authorized to fill vacancies by appointment. Community members may indicate their interest by contacting Board Chairman Mo Radke or by attending a Board meeting. A map of the district is available online, as is a street index that is organized by sub-district (search for District 30 in the index, then find the sub-district).

Comments Welcome: Please join us for all of our meetings. If you are unable to attend, you may provide testimony online and contact Neighborhood Board members directly. Comments on this blog are welcomed. To add a comment, please click on the link below. Also, please like us on Facebook and comment there.