Updated at 4:21 p.m., Wednesday, September 12, 2007
Senate OKs $20M for Honolulu-Kapolei transit project
Advertiser Staff
U.S. Sens. Daniel K. Inouye and Daniel K. Akaka said today the Senate has approved $20 million to fund the preliminary engineering phases of the facility and transit system design of the Honolulu-Kapolei transit project.The initiative — known as the Honolulu High-Capacity Transit Corridor Project — is one of the top priorities of the Hawai'i congressional delegation, and it was part of the Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act for Fiscal Year 2008 that the Senate passed today by a vote of 88 to 7.
The Honolulu-Kapolei project is among the 21 transportation and housing initiatives for Hawai'i that total nearly $83.7 million in the Senate-approved appropriations measure.
Inouye, a senior member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, noted that 60 percent of O'ahu's population lives in the transit corridor — more than 546,000 people — and they say they want relief from heavy traffic congestion.
"The transit corridor project offers a solution to the traffic woes between fast-growing Kapolei and densely populated Honolulu," Inouye said in a news release.
Akaka added: "I am proud this bill includes substantial resources that will improve our transportation infrastructure, and also provide additional opportunities for affordable housing, and strengthening social service providers in Hawai'i."
Other Hawai'i-related initiatives in the measure include a combined total of more than $11.5 million for Native Hawaiian housing, loan guarantees and community development; $7.5 million for ferry infrastructure or vessels; $1.6 million to prevent the introduction of alien species through aircraft that fly to Hawai'i; and $300,000 housing repair and renovation of Kunia Village.
Inouye said: "When Del Monte announced that it was ending local operations, it meant not only the loss of 500 jobs for working men and women; it also meant that Del Monte was leaving without repairing and renovating the nearly century-old homes in Kunia Village that housed its workers and their families."
The funding measure now moves to a House-Senate conference committee to resolve differences between and House and Senate versions of the bill. Inouye will serve as one of the Senate's conferees.
The following are the Hawai'i-related initiatives in the Fiscal Year 2008 Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act that the Senate passed today:
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
These funds are used to support and maintain the City and County of Honolulu's bus system, including the purchase of replacement buses and Handi-vans, and the construction of transit centers.
The appropriation will fund the preliminary engineering phases of initial facility and transit system design, in addition to the refinement of capital cost estimates, as required by the Federal Transit Administration.
This is Hawai'i's share of an allocation that is equally divided between Hawai'i and Alaska for capital investments in ferry infrastructure or vessels, and will support O'ahu's renewed interest in a ferry system from West O'ahu to Honolulu.
These funds will be used to complete this project, which provides safe freeway access to and from downtown Honolulu.
These funds will be used by Hawai'i, Maui and Kaua'i counties to purchase buses to expand routes and increase the frequency of service throughout the Neighbor Islands. The funds may also be used to provide bus shelters, transit benches, and upgrades to comply with the requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act.
This appropriation will be used to continue the implementation of the federal Alien Species Action Plan governing the State of Hawai'i and air carriers serving Hawai'i to prevent the introduction of alien species through aircraft that fly to Hawai'i. Under this initiative, aircraft and cargo must be inspected and cleared of alien species upon arrival. Maui's Kahului Airport is the only airport in the nation subject to these rigorous inspection requirements.
Federal property within Hawai'i includes several extensive wildlife refuge and national parks located on four islands. These parks encompass rugged volcanic terrain, wetlands, tropical forests, coastline and historical fishponds used in Native Hawaiian aquaculture. This appropriation will enable access to and within designated federal properties for proper park service maintenance and security.
DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT
The Department of Hawaiian Home Lands (DHHL) is working to increase the affordable housing inventory on Hawaiian homelands to meet the demand for housing for low-income Native Hawaiian families. DHHL is seeking to enhance the supply of affordable housing units through the construction of infrastructure improvements, single-family, multifamily, rent-to-own and rental housing.
This appropriation is half of the $3 million provided through the HUD Community Development Fund to support both Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions in their efforts to address community development needs in their localities, including neighborhood revitalization, housing, and economic development, principally for persons of low or moderate income.
These funds in credit subsidy will support loan-guarantee authority of $41,504,255. The Department of Hawaiian Home Lands (DHHL) intends to utilize the loan program as an institutional borrower to construct houses for purchase by low-income borrowers by way of direct loans from DHHL.
This appropriation will be used to build a client support service facility in Hilo to expand services for disabled people, develop a community choir and music program, create a Special Olympics training program, provide a wheelchair-accessible swimming pool, develop low-income housing and expand after-school youth services.
These funds will be used to complete construction of a center that will be used as a health center and daycare facility. The center will primarily be used to provide low- and moderate-income elderly men and women with instruction on computer use, aerobics, cooking, gardening, music, dance, nutrition, medication, personal hygiene and health screening.
This appropriation will be used to renovate a Catholic Charities Hawaii social service community center.
This appropriation will help complete the construction of a program service center in Kapolei. The center will have activity rooms, classrooms, and physical therapy, occupational therapy and speech therapy rooms to serve 500 youths and adults with autism, cerebral palsy, Down's syndrome and other disabilities.
Leeward O'ahu has a large population of chronically underserved communities, including Native Hawaiians and non-native speakers. Leeward residents seeking job training currently must take a three-hour bus ride to access training programs in urban Honolulu. The center in Capel will assist 1,600 individuals in acquiring English language, resume-writing and interview skills.
The appropriation supports the work of Gregory House Programs, a Honolulu-based nonprofit agency, which provides temporary shelter and support services, including job training, for homeless people coping with AIDS/HIV.
This appropriation will be used to design, develop, and construct an interactive exhibit center that would create community awareness on preserving the watershed that feeds into the Ala War Canal.
The remote Kinabulu area of east Maui is mainly inhabited by Native Hawaiian families that have lived in the area for generations. The community engages in small-scale organic agriculture, ranching, hunting, and fishing. However, the community is challenged by poverty and substance abuse. This project will permit the community to process products such as poi, sugar cane juice, bananas and fish, and support job and income generation, and skill development.
These funds will be used to construct an adult day health center in Pearl City that will provide social, cultural, educational and recreational activities to help the elderly remain active and productive. Hawai'i's aging population is expected to increase exponentially in the next decade.
Funds will be used to construct a botanical research center, which will be used to assist economically disadvantaged families living on west Kaua'i by training both youths and adults in horticulture and natural resource management. Through skilled and gainful employment, the cycle of poverty will be broken.
