Showing posts with label Hanalei. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Hanalei. Show all posts

Monday, June 10, 2019

Vacation rentals changing Hawaii economy, empty Kakaako condos, fighting beach erosion, Molokai policeman arrested on drug charges, more news from all the Hawaiian Islands

copyright 2019 All Hawaii News all rights reserved
Waikiki beach ©2019 All Hawaii News
Hawaii allocates $13M to keep Waikiki Beach from disappearing. The economic impact to Hawaii of Waikiki Beach was recently estimated at $2.2 billion a year, but the crumbling Royal Hawaiian groin and other man-made structures are all that is keeping the state’s most visited beach from being swept away. Star-Advertiser.

HTA: Visitors In Vacation Homes Spend Less. Hawaii Tourism Authority data might seem merely to quantify the obvious, but the data could explain a trend that concerns local economists. Civil Beat.

Vacation rental guests contributing less to tourism economy. Guests staying at vacation rentals in Hawaii aren’t exactly big spenders. Star-Advertiser.

Hawaiian Air fixes tech glitch that grounded some flights on Saturday. The airlines says it's a software problem that interrupted reception of the Global Positioning Satellite system. KITV.

Oahu

Vacation rental giants look to temper Council bills. Representatives for two of the world’s largest operators of web platforms that broker vacation rentals voiced disappointment at a Honolulu City Council committee’s decision Friday to advance two bills they said will cause thousands of job cuts in Hawaii and severely hurt the visitor industry. Star-Advertiser.

Kakaako’s Empty Condos: ‘At Night, It’s A Ghost Town Down Here'. Merchants say they leased new space in Ward Village expecting to benefit from the proximity of hordes of condo-dwellers. Now they wonder where they are. Civil Beat.

Kakaako homeless group wants state to provide land for a 'safe place'. A group of homeless residents in Kakaako are working towards finding state land to live on permanently.  KITV.

Honolulu Rail Officials Hand-Deliver Recovery Plan To Feds. The trip to San Francisco was made in hopes that the Federal Transit Administration will start releasing more money for the project. Civil Beat.

Scientists hopeful for endangered orangeblack Hawaiian damselfly. Today only one population of the colorful native aquatic insect remains on Oahu. Star-Advertiser.

Hawaii Island

21 charter amendments heading to 2020 ballot. West Hawaii Today.

DLNR bounces wells application back to PGV. Applications for two new geothermal wells have been reviewed and returned to Puna Geothermal Venture with comments, the state Department of Land and Natural Resources confirmed this week. Tribune-Herald.

Hu Honua Delays Compound While Waiting For Court Judgement. The bioenergy company says the continued employment of its workers are placed at risk as it awaits the Hawaii Supreme Court Judgement that will reopen the PUC docket. Big Island Video News.

New possibilities for Alii corridor. More than a decade after an effort to develop Alii Parkway stalled, a subcommittee under the Kona Community Development Plan action committee is taking a new look at a possible future for the project. West Hawaii Today.

Legacy still on watch list. Legacy Hilo Rehabilitation and Nursing Center has shown improvement since being named a special focus facility nearly two years ago, according to a list of such facilities provided by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services that was updated in May. Tribune-Herald.

Maui

Problems at Baby Beach. Effort to halt erosion, block access to some wrongdoers backfires. Maui News.

Celebrity couple’s request highlights Maui’s housing woes. A celebrity couple’s request to convert their Hawaii home into a short-term rental is landing them in the middle of a housing debate on the island of Maui. Star-Advertiser.

Maui police are reporting that they have arrested one of their long-time police officers on suspicion of multiple drug-related offenses. Star-Advertiser.

MPD officer on Molokai arrested on drug-related charges. Daniel Imakyure is a 10-year veteran of the department. Maui News.

Kauai

Haena, Wainiha communities prepare to welcome visitors after a year of seclusion. Kuhio Highway on Kauai's North Shore has been closed since April 2018 after devastating flooding caused millions of dollars in damage to the Wainiha and Haena area. KHON2.

A Kapaa man is questioning the county’s actions in the delayed reopening of Black Pot Beach Park in Hanalei. Garden Island.

Trespassing bride and groom. Just as the sun was rising on the first day in June, a wedding planner allegedly held a private and pretty ceremony at Hanalei’s Black Pot Beach Park. Garden Island.

Molokai

Maui police are reporting that they have arrested one of their long-time police officers on suspicion of multiple drug-related offenses. Star-Advertiser.

MPD officer on Molokai arrested on drug-related charges. Daniel Imakyure is a 10-year veteran of the department. Maui News.

Friday, May 24, 2019

$100M in federal disaster relief passes U.S. Senate, high marks for state school superintendent, urban Honolulu population drops, Hawaiian Airlines error nets $12 Mainland fares, more news from all the Hawaiian Islands

copyright 2019 All Hawaii News all rights reserved
Hawaiian Volcano Observatory (center right) perches on the edge of expanded caldera ©2019 All Hawaii News
 Senate approves disaster funding bill with more than $100M for Big Island, Kauai. A measure that provides nearly $100 million to relocate the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory was approved by the U.S. Senate on Thursday. Hawaii News Now.

Hawaii School Superintendent Gets High Marks In Year 2. Christina Kishimoto received a positive evaluation from the state Board of Education. Civil Beat.

The Public Utilities Commission issued a decision and order Thursday to prioritize new regulations designed to lower electricity costs, improve customer service, expand customer choices and cost-effectively meet the state’s clean- energy goals. Star-Advertiser.

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Honolulu’s Population Fell In 2018. Oahu is getting less crowded while more people are living on the neighbor islands according to 2018 census data. Civil Beat.

Honolulu’s population declined for a 4th consecutive year in 2018. At a time when people are moving to cities in droves, Urban Honolulu appears to be an exception. Hawaii News Now.

Zero-miles flights really were too good to be true. A computer coding error at Hawaiian Airlines led to an online flood of ticket sales Monday. It looked like flights could be purchased for zero HawaiianMiles, with customers paying only the taxes on the fares. KHON2.

Oahu

Kealoha trial jurors are shown a mailbox and more surveillance video. Prosecutors in the federal conspiracy trial of retired Honolulu Police Chief Louis Kealoha and his former deputy prosecutor wife, Katherine Kealoha, showed the jury Thursday an actual mailbox and more surveillance video of a person taking the Kealohas’ mailbox. Star-Advertiser.

‘Why Us?’ Homicide Detective Wondered As He Was Assigned To Mailbox Case. Testifying during Day 2 of the Kealoha trial, Dru Akagi said he thought it was a “conflict” to take on a theft case in which his boss the police chief was an alleged victim. Civil Beat.

Homicide detective who helped investigate Kealoha mailbox theft asked ‘Why us?’ A homicide detective who investigated the theft of the Kealohas’ mailbox was among six witnesses who took the stand Thursday in the second day of a public corruption trial against Honolulu’s ex-police chief, his wife and three officers. Hawaii News Now.

KEALOHA TRIAL: "Why us?" Homicide detective takes the stand. KHON2.

Testimony continues as the Kealoha Trial enters Day Two. After her attorney labeled this trial simply a misunderstanding from a fighting family, prosecutors presented evidence they feel showed Katherine Kealoha was the mastermind behind this conspiracy. KITV.

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Equipment torched amid conflict over Waimanalo park. An excavator and a bulldozer were set on fire near the entrance of Waimanalo Bay Beach Park, also known as Sherwoods and Sherwood Forest, where preliminary work for a much- protested city project is underway. Star-Advertiser.

Police suspect heavy equipment blaze at controversial development was intentionally set. Honolulu police officials believe heavy-duty machinery that was being used to clear ironwood trees at Sherwood Forest were intentionally set ablaze late Wednesday. Hawaii News Now.

Kailua Beach Park again picked as best in the U.S. Hawaii's Kailua Beach Park has been selected as the best stretch of sand for an annual list of top U.S. public beaches compiled by Florida International University Prof. Stephen Leatherman, also known as "Dr. Beach." Associated Press.

Hawaii Island

Senate Disaster Relief Includes Nearly $70 M For Hawaiian Volcano Observatory. Big Island Video News.

Breaking down the budget. Community Forums on Thursday evening hosted a panel of county officials, headed by Mayor Harry Kim, to explain and justify their asks in the wake of a financial calendar year marred by volcanic tragedy, mass transit turmoil and homeless disruption across the island. West Hawaii Today.

Overcrowded Hawaii Community Correctional Center is moving closer to expansion, with the publication Thursday of an anticipated finding of no significant environmental impact for a new building. West Hawaii Today.

The state Department of Public Safety has issued a draft environmental assessment for a new medium-security unit at the Hawaii Community Correctional Center. Tribune-Herald.

3 Hawaii island visitors confirmed to have contracted rat lungworm disease. The state Health Department has received confirmation from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention of three unrelated cases of rat lungworm disease diagnosed in visitors to Hawaii Island. Star-Advertiser.

Maui

Maui Water Quality Group Settles Injection Well Litigation with County. Attorney for the group, Lance D. Collins says that after over a decade of litigation, the Pukoa o Kama Alliance has agreed to settle its case in exchange for the County’s commitment to continue reducing its reliance on injection wells in South Maui. Maui Now.

An update on the Wailuku Civic Complex will be given by the Maui Redevelopment Agency on Friday, May 24, 2019, in the Planning Department Conference Room at 1 p.m. Maui Now.

Kahului Temperature Hits Record for Fourth Time in Five Days. The National Weather Service reports that the temperature at Kahului Airport on Wednesday, May 22, 2019, reached 96 degrees, breaking the old record of 92 degrees set for that day in 2014. Maui Now.

Kauai

$11M for wildlife refuge. The Hanalei National Wildlife Refuge is getting federal money for repairs and is one step closer to establishing a new lookout so people can see the restored refuge. Garden Island.