Kam Drive-In runoff addressed

By Rod Ohira
Advertiser Central O'ahu Writer

Consolidated Amusement has hired a local engineering firm to address the dirt and water runoff problem at Kam Drive-In, a first step toward possibly resolving an issue that has frustrated city officials and area residents.

Several times a year after heavy rain, water and dirt run off the site of Kam Drive-In in Pearlridge and into the storm sewer system, ending up in Pearl Harbor and forcing street closures. The property owner and tenant both say they are working on the problem. Advertiser library photo

Consolidated Amusement operates a swap meet at the drive-in site, 98-850 Moanalua Road.

On Sept. 13, the city's Department of Environmental Services' Storm Water Quality Branch sent a notice of violation to Consolidated Amusement's Los Angeles office after an investigator saw evidence July 1 of soil sediment from the Kam Drive-In property discharged through the city's sewer system into state waters at Pearl Harbor.

Consolidated was fined $3,000 and ordered to correct the violation within 30 days. It did not respond to the notice until the 30-day period was nearly up.

"Our attorneys are in negotiations with Consolidated's attorneys to resolve the matter," city spokeswoman Carol Costa said on Thursday. Costa said the notice of violation and fine still stand.

In a telephone interview from Los Angeles, Consolidated vice president Jay Swerdlow said, "We are addressing it ... and I believe it can be corrected."

Swerdlow declined to name the engineering firm hired last week.

Frustrating attempts to get the problem corrected is finger-pointing by the Kamehameha Schools' Assets Division and Consolidated.

"There's ongoing discussions regarding the property," Swerdlow said without commenting on where the responsibility lies.

For several years, heavy rain has caused water and dirt to flow onto Kaonohi Street. Okino said the runoff has forced closure of sections of the street three or four times a year for the past four years.

"The water pours off the pavement (of Kam Drive-In), down the slope and onto the roadway," he said. "All the dirt (on the slope) covers half the road and makes it impossible for cars to go through. I even saw a tree come down one time.

"When the dirt comes down, Consolidated cleans the roadway off," Okino added. "I'm frustrated because we keep reporting it but there's no permanent solution. They keep passing the buck between Kamehameha Schools and Consolidated, and nobody is addressing it."

Two representatives of Kamehameha Schools — Rick Robinson, director of the commercial assets division, and Loralyn Cachola — attended the Sept. 13 'Aiea Neighborhood Board meeting. Robinson told the board Kamehameha Schools realizes how bad the problem is and Cachola said steps would be taken to remedy the situation.

Concerns were raised at that meeting about the increasing sediment — three to four feet wide and four to five feet deep during the heavy rains in March.

In statements to the board, Gerald Takayesu of the Storm Water Quality Branch said, "It's something easily corrected, but once erosion starts and the ground becomes unstable, the erosion of the slope becomes wider, because there is no drainage on the slope to control the soil from eroding."

The Kam Drive-In problem was on the 'Aiea Neighborhood Board's agenda for the October meeting last Monday, but no one from Kamehameha Schools or Consolidated showed up.

Chairman William Clark voiced his frustration before the board.

"The position of the board," he said the next day, "is that even though it would appear a citation was issued, Consolidated Amusement knows what the problem is ... and we're looking to find out what they intend to do to resolve it. Just paying a fine is not acceptable."

Reach Rod Ohira at 535-8181 or rohira@honoluluadvertiser.com