City to help Kaimuki erect Christmas tree
By James Gonser
Advertiser Urban Honolulu Writer
Kaimuki's big electric-light Christmas tree, which was in jeopardy for the second year in a row, will be up in time for the annual holiday parade along Wai'alae Avenue Dec. 5 after the city relented and agreed to provide crews and equipment to do the job after all.
Advertiser library photo • Dec. 20, 2001
Ginny Meade, a member of the Greater East Honolulu Community Alliance, said she is relieved the city is once again helping to put up the tree, but residents know they need to take over responsibility for the project.
The electric-light Christmas tree behind the Kaimuki Fire Station has been a fixture in the community for years.
Kaimuki resident Leonard Tam and Phil Keat of the Kaimuki Business and Professional Association are putting together a group to adopt the project so this problem doesn't come up year after year, Meade said.
"The idea is to make this a set-in-stone operation," Meade said. "At such-and-such a time, we have to do the Kaimuki Christmas tree. We are going to get together and try to make that happen."
Last year, the city told the community that it was unable to spare crews and equipment to assemble the metal poles for the 45-foot tree and string the lights as it had done for some 15 years. Residents worked together to repair the tree parts, and the city came through with the needed cherry pickers to lift the parts into place, but not until after the annual parade.
After the city said it could not help this year, residents began a search for a company with cherry pickers and operators to do the job for free as a community service. A private contractor had tentatively agreed to help with the project and Hawaiian Electric Co. had said it would step in with support if needed. The effort was still being pulled together when city officials decided they could help after all.
Mayor Jeremy Harris said he realizes how important the Christmas tree is to the community and took two crews off Honolulu City Lights for the project.
Two cherry pickers, 60 feet tall and 45 feet tall, will be taken to the Pu'u o Kaimuki Mini Park site to lift the tree parts. The job is expected to take two or three days, and members of the Kaimuki Lions Club will help on the ground.
Every Christmas since the mid-1980s, the electric tree has been a holiday beacon for residents in the area and for miles around.
A fund also has been started to expand the Christmas celebration to include lighting up the business district along Wai'alae Avenue, similar to what used to be done in the 1960s.
For information, call Meade at 737-4125.
Reach James Gonser at jgonser@honoluluadvertiser.com or 535-2431.
