COM 0825.051 2004-2006 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Page 1 of 2 Murashige, Laura From: Scrawford2@aol.com Sent: Saturday, May 13, 2006 7:17 PM To: counciltestimony@co.hawa!!.hi.us Cc: Pilago, K. Angel Subject: Testimony on bill 268 Honorable Council Members, I hope that you will give serious consideration to bill 268 and will vote yes on it. That doesn't mean that meetings actually start to happen on both sides of this enormous island --it just means people get to vote on the possibility. It is only fair that people have the opportunity to vote on this issue. I wish I could attend your meeting this week, but, alas, I have commitments I cannot change or miss. Perhaps if the meeting were in, say, Kailua, things might be different. No doubt you have heard there is a large outcry from the west side of the island. There is a feeling of neglect and indifference from those in charge (Hilo and its county government) about the west side of the island. Yes, there are thoughts that there is taxation without adequate representation, which should sound familiar from your civics classes of old; a feeling of East getting the tax dollars - with wide streets and, sometimes, actual shoulders and sidewalks, occasionally even guardrails - versus West, where the infrastructure is crumbling and inadequate to begin with. Major roads in population centers in West Hawaii can be narrow two-lane-no-shoulder and on-a-cliff-without-guardrails affairs, whereas major roads in Hilo are boulevards with sidewalks. If you ever drive Palani just down from the Mamalahoa junction, please take a look off the side of the road to see where cars have careened off the narrow but major artery into the air, falling into a coffee field below. Promises are made and road improvements are projected - ask anyone from the Kona districts and they will rattle off at least three projects that were supposed to have been completed by now and are not - ask three people, and and it's likely they will each name three different ones, most likely. Here's one that could be considered a broken promise in the making Kuakini Highway from Palani Road to Hualalai Road. The County said, in essence, "Give us 18 months of traffic pain, and we'll make Kuakini Highway into a splendid 4-lane road." GREAT! Of course, traffic at both ends will still be stodgy, but it's a start. Have you seen this road lately? It's as though the County is saying to Kailua: "Oh, you thought we meant two lanes in EACH direction? We meant a two-lane road with turning lanes." The roads are just a part of it, though. Parks, police and other emergency services, as well as other necessary safety and recreation facilities are also neglected, underfunded, and, as a result, struggling. We are even surprised to find a managing police officer who actually lives in Kona. Could it be that anything from Hilo is - automatically the preferred child in the eyes of our parental County government? Or is that just a perception? I know the County does not have unlimited funds. I know there are people within the County government trying to make the dispersal of funds in West Corerr? Hawaii more fair. But to understand the disparity, it is important to visit West No. Hawaii frequently and to know both the situation and the daily aches and pains Ref. Toc Ref. Date 5/15/2006