Posted on: Thursday, April 14, 2005

BUREAUCRACY BUSTER

By Robbie Dingeman
Advertiser Staff Writer

Q. Why does the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands allow one lessee to make another Native Hawaiian pay for the right to take over a lease? I'm appalled because I recently saw a DHHL property in Papakolea go on sale in excess of $100,000 for a home in unlivable condition. The listing indicated a balance of $80,000 on a home more than 60 years old. It would take more than twice that sales amount to demolish, level and build another home. To add on the price of the lease is ridiculous. What right does any lessee have to receive a benefit for selling the right to lease on Hawaiian Home Lands?

A. State administrative rules do not allow the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands to restrict the sale of homestead leases from one qualified Native Hawaiian to another, said DHHL spokesman Lloyd Yonenaka. However, no one is forced to buy a house on a leased property or — in this case — to pay for a lease, he said.

He acknowledged that the selling of leases can be an emotional and divisive issue. "It is important to note that there are those who feel that the lessee should have the right to transfer or sell their leasehold interest, as long as it is to another eligible Native Hawaiian," he said.

"There are others who believe that this practice is unfair to the applicants on the waiting list," Yonenaka said.

He added: "The issue presented by your reader is of serious concern to us. We are in the process of finalizing recommendations to the community and Hawaiian Homes Commission on administrative rule changes that would help the department to eliminate the abuse of homestead opportunities."

Q. We frequently hear gunshots in the Wahiawa-Whitmore Village area — many in a row or sometimes a few at a time. We and other neighbors have called the police several times to report the gunshots, but we're told that there is nothing they can do about it. I am worried that someone will be seriously hurt or killed by a stray bullet.

A. Wahiawa police Maj. Michael Thomas said police do take those calls seriously. He suggests that anyone who hears gunshots call 911 right away and give a location of where you think they're coming from and where you are at.

"We'll send beat officers if they are available," Thomas said. He acknowledges that it can be difficult to pinpoint where the noise is coming from, but the more details that police get, the better.

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