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Aloha and mahalo for giving me this opportunity to appear before you to present a <br /> problem in our community that needs your immediate attention. My name is Meg Childs <br /> and I have been asked to represent our South Kona Community and our Neighborhood <br /> Watch. Out of respect for the members of the County Council and the general public <br /> who may have other pressing issues to discuss with you, I will be speaking in behalf of <br /> the many members of our community that you see before you. <br /> At this time I would like to ask that those of you who have attended this meeting to <br /> support a new fully-staffed police station for the South Kona police district to please <br /> stand and be recognized. <br /> In October of 1988 the main police station of Kona was moved from Captain Cook to <br /> Kealakehe. At that time, the population of Kona had shifted and the majority of our <br /> citizens resided in North Kona. Many of us who you see before you did not come out to <br /> protest this move because it was the right and responsible thing to do. We recognized <br /> the fact that our county had a limited amount of resources and that it was imperative <br /> that these resources be placed where it would best serve the whole community. <br /> We are all here tonight because the South Kona police district has several major <br /> problems that you can help us solve. We have serious traffic problems, drug problems, <br /> and crime. Our police district covers all of South Kona and parts of North Kona. It <br /> starts from mile marker 116 next to the Old Tanaka Quarry Road in Mauka Keauhou <br /> and extends to the 83 mile marker in Manuka. According to the 2000 census we have <br /> 10,576 citizens living in an area that exceeds 335 square miles (South Kona alone). <br /> This does not include the 17,000 visitors per day on our roads. There are only 12 police <br /> officers assigned to our police district making it the most unprotected district in our <br /> county. Our 814 citizens per officer is the highest citizen to officer ratio in our county. <br /> Due to the limited amount of officers, 2 per shift, and size of our district it is not <br /> uncommon for citizens to wait in excess of an hour for officers to respond to a call for <br /> service. Many times calls are prioritized based on the severity of the call. <br /> The 7th District of which many of us are a part contributes the third largest amount of <br /> property tax to the county coffers and yet, we are the only district outside of Puna and <br /> South Hilo that does not have afully-staffed police station. Our population is larger than <br /> North Hilo and Hamakua combined, or North Kohala or Kau and all of these districts <br /> have afully-staffed police station. <br /> We ask that you consider the needs of our community and request that you distribute <br /> our limited resources fairly. We now ask that you do the right and responsible thing for <br /> all of us. <br /> No matter which way you look at it -population count, property tax contribution, district <br /> size or current police allocation per citizen - we deserve afully-staffed police station. To <br /> deny us this would be an act of neglect or negligence on the county's part. By all of us <br /> being here tonight we are actually serving you notice that we will no longer sit idly by <br /> and watch our community go without the proper protection we rightfully deserve. <br /> Thank you once again for allowing us this time to present you with the problems of our <br /> community. <br /> RECtIV'Cr <br /> By - Comm. N0. <br /> ~i~; <i Ref. To: Pr <br /> <br /> Oaro <br /> ~,,,,~y GauncJl ~ Ref. Date <br /> <br />