HAWAI'I BRIEFS
National award for turtle studies
Hawai'i researcher George Balazs has been awarded the National Wildlife Federation's Conservation Achievement Award for his work on the threatened Hawaiian green sea turtle.
Balazs, a biologist with NOAA Fisheries, helped place the turtles on the federal endangered species list in 1978 and has overseen research on the animals throughout his career — during which the population has recovered significantly.
His work with radio-tagging has shown that the turtles can take long open-ocean routes from their feeding sites to nesting areas and that they can navigate hundreds of miles without landmarks. Many of them make those voyages from the main Hawaiian Islands to nesting beaches in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands.
EAST HONOLULU
Closures exclude peak hours
The city will begin working on temporarily replacing the sewer line along Kalaniana'ole Highway that has burst in roughly the same spot three times in one month.
Construction begins April 25 and will affect nonpeak traffic, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. and 10 p.m. to 5 a.m., over the next several months. The contractor, Jas W. Glover Ltd., has been instructed to confine lane closures to no more than one lane in each direction.
An emergency bypass will allow the city to install a permanent replacement for the 45-year-old force main that ruptured in February because of erosion. The bypass will run from the Niu Valley wastewater pumping station, under Kalaniana'ole Highway to a sewer line at Pu'uikena Drive and Hawai'i Loa Ridge. Sewage will be diverted from the pump station to the bypass line, allowing for replacement of the current main.
This is a temporary fix, as the permanent fix will take at least three years to design and build, according to the city.
HAWAI'I KAI
Library to get Lions' donations
HAWAI'I KAI — The Nagoya Joto Lions Club and Hawai'i Kai Lions Club will present their 18th annual gift donation to the Hawai'i Kai Public Library at 4:30 p.m. tomorrow.
Officers of both Lions clubs, which formed a sister relationship in 1988, as well as officials from the Hawai'i State Public Library System, will attend the presentation ceremony at the library.
Since 1988, the Lions clubs have combined to donate nearly $31,000 and a variety of unique Japanese artwork and decorations to the library.
KALIHI
Renovations set at Kalihi-Waena
Renovations at Kalihi-Waena Elementary School will transform the library and the music and language classrooms and will improve accessibility. The project is expected to cost $300,000 and to be completed in August 2006.
Gov. Linda Lingle recently released $73,000 toward the project.
The language classroom and music room on the ground floor of Building H will be turned into a library, and the library space in Building F will be transformed into two classrooms with about 918 square feet each.
The work includes interior renovations to the walls, floors, ceiling, electrical system, air conditioning and humidity controls, and other related work.
The library, on the second floor with stairway accessibility only, is very small.
Relocating it to the two classroom spaces on the ground floor, near the computer resource center, will allow access to all.
MAUI
School project gets more money
WAILUKU, Maui — The state has released an additional $491,000 to complete an eight-classroom building at Baldwin High School.
The building, which has been under construction for a year, has two science classrooms and six general-use classrooms.
The new building is expected to be ready for use in the second half of the 2005-2006 school year.
State officials said Baldwin has exceeded its capacity of 1,516 students and expect enrollment to reach 1,716 by 2008.
WAIPAHU
Suspect charged in bank holdup
A 26-year-old man was charged yesterday in connection with the Monday robbery of the Waipahu branch of American Savings Bank.
Keoni Hylton was charged with one count of robbery and was being held last night without bail.
Hylton is accused of being the man who entered the bank at about 10:30 a.m., saying to a teller that he was armed and demanding money. After being given an undetermined amount of money, the robber fled and was last seen running through the Waipahu Town Center parking lot.
Police said Hylton was convicted of two bank robberies in 2001, including the robbery of the same American Savings Bank branch on May 21, 2001.
KAILUA
Burglary, beating suspect held
A 23-year-old man was arrested yesterday in connection with a March 8 burglary and the assault of a Kailua man.
The suspect was booked on one count of first-degree burglary and second-degree assault. He was being held last night in a police cellblock.
On March 8, two men wearing sweaters and hoods over their faces broke into a Kailua home. Police said they used baseball bats to beat a 24-year-old resident.
While he was being beaten, the victim managed to pull the hood off one of his attackers and recognized him as a former high school classmate, police said. The second suspect remained at large yesterday.
HONOLULU
Trask to give lecture on book
Hawaiian studies professor and author Haunani-Kay Trask will give a reading and lecture on her book "From a Native Daughter" at 6:30 p.m. tomorrow at the Hawaii State Library.
The free public event is sponsored by the Hawai'i Library Association, marking National Library Week.
The book, subtitled "Colonialism and Sovereignty in Hawai'i" was published by University of Hawai'i Press in 1993, during the centennial observance of the overthrow of the Hawaiian monarchy.
Earlier this spring, the Hawai'i Library Association submitted "From a Native Daughter" as its adult book selection for the American Library Association's "Many Voices, One Nation" project.
Information: Dore Minatodani at 956-2852 or dorem@hawaii.edu.
