Parking rates at parks too low

The City Council is considering raising parking fees in urban Honolulu. A significant fee increase is long overdue. It amazes me that some people are now complaining about having to pay an additional 50 or 75 cents an hour for prime parking, especially in Waikiki, where fees haven’t been raised in years.

Our beaches and parks are free for all families, but not for cars. At current rates, parking is subsidized by all of us, which in today’s economy is not acceptable.

Let’s charge market rate for all parking on city lots and use the money to improve bike, sidewalk and bus transit. Providing cheap/free parking only encourages more driving.

Jeff Merz
Waikiki

Curb spending, don’t raise fees

Bill 30 regarding increased and expanded parking fees at public parks needs to die and never be resurrected in any form. These are hard economic times, and denying the use of beaches and parks by requiring ever-increasing parking fees is the same as charging entry fees for those places. We already pay taxes to maintain beaches and parks. Shame on those City Council members willing to leach every dime from their constituents instead of curbing their spending.

Waikiki Beach and Kapiolani Park are not just for tourists. They are our legacy as residents of Hawaii and should be affordable for all.

Anne K. Clarkin
Diamond Head

Friedman naive about protests

Columnist Thomas L. Friedman suggests that "every Friday … thousands of West Bank Palestinians march nonviolently to Jerusalem … carrying two things — an olive branch and a sign . . . " ("Israel would benefit from 2-state solution," Star-Advertiser, May 27).

What a nice idea, but I think Mr. Friedman feigns naivete. Peaceful protests and civil disobedience have long been impossible for Palestinians, and those attempted have routinely met with Israeli state terror and brutality.

Grievous injuries, such as those suffered by Americans Tristan Anderson and Emily Henochowicz, who demonstrated in solidarity with Palestinians in the West Bank, are routinely experienced by Palestinians.

Israeli state policies and actions that have long made demonstrations by Palestinians extremely dangerous were summarized by writers such as politically conservative Israeli historian Benny Morris and renowned Israeli author Gershon Baskin.

Why does Mr. Friedman choose to wear blinders?

George M. Hudes
Honolulu

Ho‘opili will be model for future

As a member of the Ho‘opili Community Task Force, I want to thank Alice Folkart for highlighting the need to design communities in a new and sustainable way ("Recast Ho‘opili to save more land," Star-Advertiser, Letters, May 24).

This is why we have worked closely with D.R. Horton-Schuler Homes over the last six years, to ensure Ho‘opili is designed much like Ms. Folkart described.

Ho‘opili is designed as a compact community set among a mix of uses and higher densities to allow residents to be within walking distance of grocery stores, job centers, parks, transit and urban agriculture.

Ho‘opili reflects the kind of community that will allow its residents and those in surrounding areas to live in a sustainable community that respects natural resources.

Frances Rivero
Ewa Beach

Hawaii should allow taxi vans

I encourage our officials to consider implementing a system of privately owned, state-licensed taxi vans.

Many Caribbean islands have excellent service to all parts of the island with taxi vans.

Such a system would:

» Serve all parts of the state.

» Not cost the taxpayers billions.

» Generate revenue through license fees.

» Provide employment.

» Keep the money in the islands.

» Use existing infrastructure, including HOV lanes.

» Reduce freeway congestion.

» Be ready to serve the people in a very short time.

James Bradley
Moiliili