O'ahu briefs
Advertiser Staff and News Services
WINDWARD
Median project set for Kailua
A median beautification project that will eventually turn a section of Kailua Road into a tree-lined thoroughfare has begun.
The work is restricting traffic during work hours, meaning delays for drivers.
About $800,000 was originally set aside for the project to install a median and plant trees in the center of the road in front of Kailua Shopping Center and extending to Bank of Hawai'i.
But the project's champion says the contractor's bid came in $500,000 less than that. Add-ons to the project following the bid acceptance will drive costs up a bit, but overall the project will still be well under the amount budgeted.
Royal Contracting bid $291,000 said Don Bremner, champion for the plan. The additional work could bring the cost up to $350,000, he said.
Construction takes place between 8:30 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. During construction, one lane is open to traffic going to Enchanted Lake on Kailua Road and two lanes are open in the opposite direction. On Ku'ulei Road, the left-turn lane onto Kailua is closed. The left lane on Kailua Road next to the triangle park is also closed.
The median should be finished by the end of November, Bremner said.
Waste reducing shows planned
A coalition that promotes waste reduction, recycling and recycled products will hold a free tour designed to provide business managers with behind-the-scenes insight into successful recycling programs.
Participants in "Tour de Trash" can choose from five models of trash recycling: multi-industry, hotels and restaurants, construction and demolition, recycling and waste processors, and recycled products.
Experts will be available for consultation on implementing recycling at businesses.
The tour will take place from 8:45 a.m. to 4 p.m. Nov. 15 beginning at Aloha Tower Marketplace. The tour ends at Kapono's at the marketplace for an informal pau-hana with entertainment by Henry Kapono.
The Partnership for the Environment, a coalition of businesses coordinated by the city, is sponsoring the tour. For more information or to register by Nov. 2, call 527-5335.
Halloween festival slated
Windward Community College will feature a multimedia ghost show and Halloween festival from 6:30 to 8 p.m. Oct. 26 at the schools Imaginarium and Aerospace Exploration Lab, 45-720 Kea'ahala Road, Kane'ohe.
The event includes a 15-minute multimedia show with ghosts, spiders and other spooky effects.
Costumed characters from the drama department, storytelling and tours of the aerospace lab are also part of the evening.
"This show will be a fun way for people to experience a whole new dimension of Halloween," said astronomy professor Joe Ciotti. "We wanted to give the community a preview of this state-of-the-art facility."
Phi Theta Kappa, the student government, the aerospace lab and the campus newspaper are coordinating the event.
Tickets for the show go on sale at 5 p.m. Oct. 26 at the Imaginarium ticket booth on a first-come, first-served basis. Tickets are $1 for children 12 years and under, and $2 for general admission.
HONOLULU
UH wins grant for sea program
The U.S. Department of Commerce has awarded the University of Hawai'i a $200,000 grant for the Hawai'i Sea Grant College Program.
The program supports a summer immersion course in earth system science at UH, provides opportunities for students at the American Samoa Community College to study science and aquaculture and supports students in the study of atoll ecosystems around the Pacific Basin.
The goal of the program is to bring minority students into environmental science careers.
Bags limited at public events
For security reasons, the city is asking that backpacks, briefcases, handbags or other personal containers larger than a clutch purse not be brought to public events at either the Neal S. Blaisdell Center or the Waikiki Shell.
All personal bags will be subject to search when entering either location, and people without hand-carried items will be allowed to use a separate and faster entry.
Coolers 18 inches or longer, and umbrellas are not allowed in the Waikiki Shell.
Man dies after being hit by truck
A 76-year-old Wai'alae man was killed Friday evening when he was hit by a pickup truck while walking in a cross walk.
Police said the man, whose identity was not released yesterday, was crossing 10th Avenue near Ka'au Street shortly after 9 p.m. when he was struck by a 1990 Nissan pickup.
He was taken to The Queens Medical Center where he was pronounced dead at 9:44 p.m.
The truck was driven by 32-year-old Pololo man. Police do not suspect that the driver was speeding or driving under the influence of alcohol, and said area where the accident occurred was well lit.
The driver was released after the accident and police opened a negligent manslaughter investigation.
The accident was the 62nd traffic fatality of the year, compared to 53 on the same date last year.
