Highway widening delayed again

Work on Queen Kaahumanu Highway isn’t likely to start until September now, Rep. Denny Coffman said Tuesday.

Coffman was one of five West Hawaii legislators who spoke during a Kona Town Meeting at the Makaeo Events Pavilion at the Old Kona Airport Park. He provided the updated construction time line in response to a question about the long-planned highway widening project, which will expand the road from two lanes to four between Kealakehe Parkway and Kona International Airport.

“We’re already four years behind,” said Coffman, whose district covers central Kona to Naalehu.

The state ran into a number of hurdles in its attempt to build the road, including two bid award protests, followed by a lengthy consultation and negotiation process with several Native Hawaiians who have expressed concerns about impacts the road will have on cultural and historical sites. The problem, Coffman said, is that the state took so long to begin and complete the first phase from Palani Road to Kealakehe Parkway that the environmental studies are now roughly 15 years old.

“You can’t go off an environmental assessment or environmental impact statement that old,” Coffman said. “Things change.”

Rep. Cindy Evans, D-North Kona, Kohala, said she frequently asked a state Department of Transportation highways official for updates on the consultation process. The regular response, Evans said, was,”we’ll be done when we’re done.”

The consultation process has dragged on for about 18 months now, Evans said.

“At some point, the federal government can say, we have exhausted the discussion, we can move forward on construction,” Evans said. “Saying that doesn’t preclude a lawsuit. You don’t know when you go in front of a judge how it will play out.”

Local legislators also criticized the state Department of Land and Natural Resources on a variety of topics, ranging from upkeep at Honokohau Harbor to the recent kayaking moratorium at Kealakekua Bay.

Honokohau Harbor has been an especially touchy issue in West Hawaii, where boaters and visitors noticed ongoing unresolved maintenance issues including overflowing garbage cans, uncleaned and sometimes damaged restrooms, and light bulbs no one would replace. During his gubernatorial campaign, and immediately following his election, Gov. Neil Abercrombie several times emphasized how he would quickly begin improvements at the harbor. Evans said West Hawaii residents have been disappointed with the pace of those improvements.

“He passed it off to the agency (DLNR),” she said. “The pace and level they’re trying to take care of it is frustrating. I think the community finds it unacceptable.”

Evans said she and Puna Rep. Faye Hanohano are trying to conduct a “personal audit” of the department, to see if they can identify its “systemic problems.”

Coffman noted other problems he has had with the department, including a conversation this legislative session with Division of Boating and Ocean Recreation Administrator Ed Underwood about Underwood’s decision to add eight moorings at Keauhou Boat Harbor. Coffman said he told Underwood the harbor is too small for such an increase.

Underwood disagreed, telling Coffman he looked at the harbor on Google Earth and was certain he could fit eight new moorings there.

Sen. Malama Solomon, D-North Hawaii, said she’s also concerned with how federal input is changing DLNR’s focus. The state’s lands are one of its biggest assets, and federal mandates creating critical habitat areas are closing off areas for expansion in some parts of the state. She noted a proposal that would have made about 40 percent of Maui a critical area.

“There’s no future for your kids,” she said. “This whole island, except for invasive species, is kind of an endangered species because we’re out in the middle of the Pacific. How far do you want to go?”

She also has concerns about how the Division of Forestry and Wildlife provides — or fails to provide — access to state lands. She sees a conflict “when a biologist running state lands views human intrusion as a problem.”