Question: The lights at Kapaolono Park have been inoperative since April 2012. This is a highly utilized park with baseball and soccer fields, swimming pool, basketball courts and tennis courts. Before the lights quit working, there were approximately 50 to 75 people using the facilities at night. Now, when it becomes dark, the keiki using the baseball fields, soccer teams practicing, people playing basketball and tennis must quit their activities and leave. This is especially a problem during the winter months when it becomes dark early. Why are the lights inoperative, why has no action been taken to date and when does the Department of Parks and Recreation plan to fix the lights?
Answer: It will be another year and a half or so before the lights at Kapaolono Park, at 711 11th Ave. in Kaimuki, will be restored.
"Unfortunately, this is not a simple fix and it will take some time to complete," said Jon Hennington, spokesman for the city Department of Parks and Recreation.
The flood lighting system at Kapaolono went out in April 2012, after the electrical distribution control box for the city’s 30-year-old high-voltage transformer failed.
Initially, a crew from the city Department of Facility Maintenance attempted to make repairs in-house to save time and money.
However, it subsequently was determined that the system needed to be replaced, so the job was put to out to bid, said Robert Kroning, director-designate for the city Department of Design and Construction, which is overseeing the project.
Because the system needed to be replaced, "the city took advantage of the opportunity to also streamline the power conversion coming from the Hawaiian Electric Co. transformer to reduce future maintenance problems," he said.
The parks department immediately allocated funding for design, while $350,000 was budgeted for construction in the 2014 fiscal year capital improvement program, he said.
The design of the replacement system, done in conjunction with HECO, is nearly complete and the construction contract is expected to be awarded in January. The targeted completion date is early 2016.
"We thank the public for their continued patience as the city works to provide a sound, safe lighting system to illuminate this popular Kaimuki park for years to come," Kroning said.
Going Green
The next monthly Going Green recycling event will be held from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Oct. 18 at Kaimuki High School, 2705 Kaimuki Ave.
Proceeds from the cash collected from the recyclables will benefit the high school, Moiliili Community Center and Kapahulu Center.
Organizers emphasize that "everything is recycled and nothing goes to the landfill."
Items accepted: computers, monitors, printers and scanners; one TV per car; cellphones; ink cartridges; scrap metal; appliances; three propane tanks; fire extinguishers; heat pumps; all kinds of batteries; used cooking oil; eyeglasses; hearing aids; white socks for Afghanistan; prom dresses, women’s business suits and accessories; pet food, towels, blankets and toys; usable clothing; household items; incandescent light bulbs (swap for CFLs, four per car); HI-5 beverage containers; and canned goods for the Hawaii Foodbank.
For free towing of unwanted cars, call Rene Mansho at 291-6151. Call Mansho or email her at renemansho@hawaii.rr.com for more information.
Mahalo
To two generous and kind women. After attending a meeting one day back in August, my friend and I (both senior citizens) went to lunch at Cinnamon’s Restaurant in Kailua. When we finished eating and asked for the check, we were told that two ladies seated nearby had not only paid our bill, but asked that we not be told until they had left the restaurant. We were speechless! May life always be good to them and may God sprinkle them with blessings. — BGS
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