Project doesn’t fit neighborhood
This new project off the Kuakini and Queen Kaahumanu highways will bring 450-plus, multiple story three- and four-bedroom condominium units. These massive buildings are 200 feet wide by 200 feet long (square) and can be up to 40 feet tall, all the way from the highway up to the top of the hill.
These rental and owned units will be rented or sold at market rates. The zoning was changed in the 1980s presuming that there would be jobs close by. As we know, the jobs are in town or north up the coast. All plans change, ask yourself how many times have you changed your plans since the 1980s. This is not the place for this type of development.
This proposed development could generate more than 1,000 plus cars on the highway plus service companies. Our highway is already a mess most days.
The developer was originally approved and required to connect to the highway and build their own roads through their complex, mauka to makai for safety reasons, emergencies, etc.
If the State Highway Department, the county, and the developer would work together to build a safe Kuakini-Queen Kaahumanu intersection at the highway, everyone would be much safer. Instead, the developers want to destroy two residential neighborhoods by putting all their traffic through the existing subdivisions instead of building their own highway connection so they put more money in their pockets and don’t care about the existing neighborhoods.
Why and who puts multi-story unit condos in single family neighborhoods? Build it in town or closer to town so traffic is lessened.
John Powell
Kailua-Kona
Article unfair to ranch
Your article about Puakea Ranch seems biased. I have been to the Ranch on a number of occasions for fundraisers and other community activities.
I am surprised your reporter did not speak with any other community members before writing such an inflammatory article. Badly done.
Olivia Ebrahimi
Hawi
Wall fund novelty
According to “Believe It or Not” (CoconutWirelessWeekly.com) and other sources, the first recorded instance of a lottery are keno slips from ancient China dating to between 201 and 187 BC.
The lotteries most likely helped finance large government projects, such as the Great Wall of China. Now is the time for our government to introduce a Mexican Wall lottery and sell tickets to Republicans. Problem solved!
Barry Blum
Kailua-Kona
GET editorial simply wrong
Yup. WHT editorial staff rolls over for Hilo once again. No surprise that WHT supports an increase in one of the most regressive taxes ever devised in the United States, the Hawaii GET.
“GET” or “Get,” either way it’s simply stealing from the poor and middle class and more GETing won’t fix the dynamics of Hawaii’s broken system of corruption and theft perpetrated as a democracy. Apparently, WHT missed Mike Reimer’s spot-on letter which WHT published Jan. 20.
I remember when WHT used to actually do investigative reporting. Does anyone else? Now Hilo steamrolls the rest of the island and WHT not only cheers, but editorializes that the theft is inadequate in scope and too slow in implementation.
Dave Lucas
Holualoa
Paving paradise not the answer
Regarding the two letters in the Jan. 22 edition from Matt Binder and Paul Prosise about the lava tube, yes, it is very dangerous as people sometimes stop suddenly as well as make U-turns, illegally, etc.
This is state property so who will pay for this? It takes the state forever to make any changes in case you haven’t noticed so maybe we should ignore the changes they will be making and instead have them “pave paradise and put up a parking lot.” What a great solution.
Kathy Awai
Waikoloa