Mililani residents welcome start of Stryker work
By Suzanne Roig
Advertiser Staff Writer
MILILANI — In houses on either side of the manicured parkways of Mililani, there is a quiet groundswell of support for the military's plan to bring a Stryker brigade to Hawai'i.
The support comes from homemakers and businessmen and those who have come to retire in this planned community east of Schofield Barracks.
Construction is set to begin this month for one of the biggest Army projects in Hawai'i since World War II. It is expected to generate $700 million in construction projects on 1,400 acres adjacent to Schofield and 23,000 acres on the Big Island.
"I welcome them," said Lily Canas, a member of the Mililani Mauka/Luanani Valley Neighborhood Board. "It will bring a lot to the community. Merchants and restaurants will make money. We will all benefit from this."
The 92-year-old Canas came to Hawai'i to retire seven years ago. She enjoys the quiet of Mililani Mauka, even when it is disrupted by the echoing rat-a-tats from gunfire at a nearby firing range.
She and others are accustomed to low-flying helicopters, parachuting military men and women and the occasional sonic boom from a jet.
Residents such as Hiromi Ruhl say they expect the military will cause an occasional disruption.
Ruhl, who has lived in her new home for five years, overlooks the ravine that separates Mililani Mauka from Schofield.
"We can't complain because they informed us before we bought this house," Ruhl said. "Anyway, it doesn't seem to bother my children. They don't get scared when there are loud noises or bangs."
The Army plans to spend $1.5 billion transforming the Army's 2nd Brigade of the 25th Infantry Division (Light) into a Stryker unit of approximately 300 armored vehicles. That means about 800 military personnel and an additional 1,200 residents are expected in the area. Stryker brigades are part of the Army's 30-year plan to provide more responsive and deployable units for the 21st century.
While residents of Mililani recently were accepting of the change, there is opposition. Last week, Chief U.S. District Judge David Ezra threw out a lawsuit by three Hawaiian and environmental groups, ruling that the groups raised their objections too late. And even if the groups had raised their objections earlier, the judge said, the Army had given the community the proper notification.
Standing in line at the recycling center at the Mililani Park and Ride Center, Rodney Yoshida predicts that the increased military presence will be a boon for the Hawai'i economy.
"I love the military here," said Yoshida, who owns a Waipahu insurance company. "I hear the planes and the shooting and the helicopters, but it's only bothersome when you're outside. It will be good for Hawai'i."
Reach Suzanne Roig at sroig@honoluluadvertiser.com or 395-8831.
