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SY 48 <br /> JAMES Y. ARAKAKI oo~~?~"'" Phone: (808} 961-8272 <br /> `~`~'P FAX: 808 96t-8912 <br /> <br /> Ctrnirnaun & Presiding Clfficer ~ } <br /> •e ;r <br /> }P~~i Na~~~o°~~ <br /> '!p~'®ff.NP.gd <br /> COUNTY COUNCIL <br /> Ha~~~ai "i County Building <br /> 2S Azrpuni Street <br /> Hilo, Hativai `i 96720 U t~ <br /> September 1, 2004 _ <br /> Honorable Governor Linda Lingle <br /> Executive Chambers <br /> State Capitol <br /> Honolulu, Hawaii 96813 - <br /> .".7 <br /> Dear Governor Lingle, <br /> Aloha! <br /> I am writing to request your help and guidance regarding state funding and adesign/build timetable for <br /> the 4-lane widening of the Queen Ka`ahumanu Highway from Kailua-Kona to the airport in Keohole. <br /> As you know, since the tragic events of 9-11, the Neighbor Islands -West Hawaii and Maui in <br /> particular -have led Hawai`i's economic recovery. Along with surging visitor counts, construction <br /> activity, real estate sales and tax receipts, the County of Hawaii is hard-pressed to sustain and justify <br /> such growth without commensurate infrastructure. Nowhere is this pressure more evident than in Kona's <br /> current traffic woes. <br /> For two decades, the County and State have agreed that the Queen Ka`ahumanu Highway should be <br /> widened to four lanes from Kailua-Kona to Kawaihae. Since 1998, traffic on the Queen Ka`aliumanu <br /> Highway has exceeded capacity. Kona residents are understandably frustrated. Impending <br /> developments, including the welcomed Superferry, will-only compound traffic woes in Kona and Kohala <br /> until the long-awaited expansion gets underway. <br /> Recently, in his implementation of a "concturency" policy focused on roads, Mayor Kim vetoed a <br /> commercial/residential rezoning development (Clifto's) adjacent to NELHA precisely because of the <br /> unknown funding and timetable for the first increment of the Queen Ka`ahumanu widening project. The <br /> County Council will take up consideration of the Mayor's veto message at its next meeting in Kona on <br /> September 15`''. It would be very helpful to the Council and the people of West Hawaii if you could <br /> provide us with a clear signal of your administration's intentions and timetable for the Queen <br /> Ka`ahumanu Highway widening project. <br /> Th nk you for your help with this request and please accept my very best wishes. <br /> ere _ <br /> r~ ' ~ <br /> ~ <br /> j. s . Araka Chair <br /> Haw `i County Council <br /> JY/A/rf Rif. 70: <br /> Ref. ~o2e <br /> <br />