Kona representation should
have been stronger on sewer
Kona representation should
have been stronger on sewer
The Environmental Management Commission gave a positive recommendation to the sewer fee hike. However, Justin Pequeno objected because he thought that Hilo owners connected to county managed gang cesspools would also be responsible for a costly conversion to a sewer line.
It was explained that the county is picking up the conversion cost on gang cesspools. How come the Kona representative did not object? This is precisely the scenario for the Lono Kona Project. The owners will be paying for the conversion and for connecting to the sewer line. They will also be paying sewer connection charges along with sewer fees.
Why is the county paying for the Hilo projects, but not the Kona projects? Is it because the Lono Kona project does not involve a group cesspool or is it because Hilo has stronger political representatives? Is it because council member Dru Kanuha did not fight for the people in his council district? The Kona side pays the majority of property taxes. Why are these dollars spent more often on the Hilo side?
In the Lono Kona op-ed by Elizabeth Poire, it is stated that the owners will have 90 days to connect to the sewer line. In the original meeting, the county representative said the requirement was to connect within two years. Ninety days is totally unreasonable. All the owners will be competing for the same resources to connect. This and the delay in the project will drive up the costs to connect. In the original meeting I asked the county representative on a cost estimate to connect. The response was around $20,000. This amount will be much higher now.
Michael Wilson
Captain Cook
