Question: What can we do about roosters that wake us up every single day before 4 a.m.? The sun is not up but the roosters are! Sleep deprivation is taking a toll.
Answer: Kokua Line receives steady complaints about feral fowl from Oahu residents desperate for a good night’s sleep. In the past few months we’ve heard from readers in Wahiawa, Kaneohe, Kailua, Waikiki and Moanalua-Salt Lake, who will be happy to learn that the city has hired a company to control feral chickens on private property and will offset the costs to do so, according to an updated Feral Chickens Fact Sheet at honolulu.gov/csd/.
Previously, the city’s vendor removed feral chickens only from city property, such as municipal parks or golf courses, and private property owners were responsible for the full cost of removing feral chickens from their own land.
“The city will fund a portion of the cost to private property owners to catch and dispose of feral chickens that are creating nuisances in communities across Oahu,” according to the fact sheet, which says “private property owners of all types” will work directly with the contractor, Sandwich Isle Pest Solutions, by calling 808-456-7716 or submitting a service request at sandwichisle.com.
The cage and disposal service will “help humanely rid private properties of feral chickens,” the fact sheet says. Prices will vary depending on the service, and each service includes a city subsidy, according to additional information from the city. For example, of the $75 weekly fee to rent a cage big enough to trap eight chickens, the landowner would pay $50 and the city would pay $25. In addition, there is a $25 fee to dispose of each caged chicken, of which the customer would pay $10 and the city $15. There’s also a full-service option that includes trapping and disposal for a week; that costs $475, of which the property owner would pay $375 and the city $100. Customer costs might fall further if other funding becomes available to subsidize the service.
The city says the new service is in response to persistent complaints from throughout Oahu about feral fowl crowing at all hours, generating large amounts of waste, damaging landscapes with continuous foraging and agitating pets. The city has long controlled chickens on its own property and discourages people from feeding the chickens at public parks and other city properties.
The fact sheet’s advice regarding feral chickens on public property remains the same: Contact the government entity that oversees the property and request that they control the chickens.
Q: Is anyone riding the Skyline train? I never hear about it anymore.
A: Oahu’s limited rail transit system had 96,178 riders in August, an average of about 3,102 riders a day, according to the city’s Department of Transportation Services. Total ridership was down steeply from July, when 151,633 riders were counted — 62,789 of whom rode for free during the introductory period, the DTS website said. Ridership statistics are updated monthly on the website, so numbers for September are not yet posted.
Rebuilding tips
Maui residents who lost their homes in the wildfires can get free information about how to rebuild to high safety standards at the Home Depot in Kahului, according to the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
“FEMA specialists are available to answer questions and offer home-improvement tips and proven methods to help prevent or reduce damage from disasters. Most information is aimed at general contractors or those who wish to do it for themselves,” the agency said in a news release.
Specialists will be available 7 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. through Sept. 23, except Sundays, at the Home Depot at 100 Pakaula St. in Kahului, it said.
Write to Kokua Line at Honolulu Star-Advertiser, 500 Ala Moana Blvd., Suite 7-500, Honolulu, HI 96813; call 808-529-4773; or email kokualine@staradvertiser.com.
