Army Guard soldiers head to Kuwait
Fifty citizen soldiers from the Hawaii Army National Guard and their Black Hawk helicopters are on their way to Kuwait for a nine-month deployment instead of Iraq.
The soldiers from Company C, 1st Battalion, 207th Regiment, were at Fort Hood, Texas, in pre-deployment training. They were originally to deploy to Iraq, but the U.S. is drawing down its troops there.
The unit left Hilo in August for Texas. The Pentagon did not say when the unit left Texas.
Meanwhile, another Hilo-base Hawaii Air National Guard unit left Monday for Southwest Asia.
The 50 airmen, air traffic control and radio communications specialists belong to the 291st Combat Communications Squadron. The unit will be away for six months.
The mission of the 291st will be to provide communications support to U.S. Air Force units within the 332nd Air Expeditionary Wing’s area of responsibility.
Say selects Chong as new majority leader
Speaker Calvin Say has named Rep. Pono Chong the new majority leader of the state House of Representatives.
Chong will replace Blake Oshiro, who resigned to become Gov. Neil Abercrombie’s deputy chief of staff. Oshiro recommended Chong to replace him, Say said Monday.
The Legislature is not in session, so Say appointed Chong in the interim. The House will hold a vote on whether to formalize Chong’s appointment when lawmakers return for a new session in January.
Water main break shuts Meheula Parkway
Board of Water Supply crews were repairing a break in a 16-inch water main on Meheula Parkway near Kuahelani Avenue that occurred after 6:30 a.m. Monday.
No customers were affected. Repair work was expected to continue overnight and into morning rush hour, the board said in a news release.
Three westbound lanes on Meheula Parkway and both northbound lanes on Kuahelani Avenue remained closed, and police advise motorists to take the Ka Uka or Mililani Tech Park offramps and onramps to H-2 freeway.
NEIGHBOR ISLANDS
Town hall event rescheduled
Kauai County Council member Mel Rapozo has rescheduled a town hall meeting from Friday to Nov. 29 at the Kilauea Neighborhood Center due to a scheduling conflict.
The meeting, which will run from 7 to 9 p.m., is one of a series of community meetings held by Rapozo, including one from 7 to 9 p.m. today with the Hanapepe community at the Hanapepe Library.
Transitional housing opens
Hawaii County Mayor Billy Kenoi will formally open the first phase of a low-income rental and transitional housing complex for West Hawaii today.
The opening of the first 40 units of Na Kaulana o Ulu Wini starts at 10 a.m. on Hina-Lani Street, mauka of Costco.
The project will provide case management, mail and computer access along with an array of on-site social services, such as employment and life skills training, mental health services, counseling and child care, according to Kenoi’s office.
The complex was built by the county Office of Housing and Community Development, and oversight of the various on-site resources will be provided by the procured program operator, HOPE Services Hawaii, formerly the Care-A-Van program of the Diocese of Honolulu.
The project eventually will have 96 two-bedroom units each with 750 square feet of living space.
Funding for the first 40 units was provided through a county $7.5 million appropriation and a U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Neighborhood Stabilization Program grant of $4.87 million awarded through the state Housing Finance and Development Corp.
