Wanted: Candidates for 444 seats on O'ahu's 32 neighborhood boards.

The fine print? You don't get paid, sometimes attend long night meetings and you act as an adviser — not a decision-maker — on community issues.

And the boards generate some criticism. For example, a city auditor's report in August faulted the neighborhood board system for lacking measurable goals, having poor oversight and a "disjointed structure." Some boards have failed to meet because of chronic absences of members, and some meetings have dissolved into shouting matches.

But City Council Chairman Donovan Dela Cruz said he thinks the boards provide a vital link from the public to the politicians. "They definitely keep elected officials and government in general on its toes," he said. "You need that."

Dela Cruz, who served on a board before being elected to the council, encourages people to get involved by running for the boards and even attending when they have community concerns.

Kathleen Pahinui, who has served for more than seven years on the North Shore Neighborhood Board, acknowledged that the boards can be improved but believes in the system for practical and idealistic reasons.

"It's a chance to do good for the community, an opportunity to make a difference," Pahinui said. And she believes the boards have proven effective at helping to shape the community.

She said the board provided the key community response when a developer proposed a shopping center at Shark's Cove. "We were able to turn away something that we felt was inappropriate," she said.

She counts a bike path in Waialua as another important victory.

Pahinui is heading a council-created task force that will evaluate the critical audit and address the questions and recommendations. She said the task force has met twice and will go back to the council by next December. Meanwhile, the group welcomes input, she said.

Dela Cruz said he thinks the task force might consider term limits "so we could get new blood involved at every level to engage as many people in the community as possible."

Pahinui said the boards know their community and help people get answers but can't solve every problem. "Our word is not law; all we do is recommend and advise," she said.

Joan Manke, executive secretary of the Neighborhood Commission, said she thinks the audit can help guide the commission and the boards to improvements. She said the commission, which runs the board on a $1 million budget, already has created a draft of an updated master plan that is now available for review on its Web site.

"It's a great system," Manke said. "It assures that citizens' voices are heard. People can come to their Neighborhood Board if they have concerns about drugs in their community or traffic."

Councilman Charles Djou also applauds the concept of the boards but would consider dramatic reforms.

"The boards serve as the closest form of government," he said, but noted that a council poll found that people who attended often were dissatisfied with what they saw.

Djou, who served as a Neighborhood Board member before being elected to the council, said the boards are divided and too narrow in focus. "It's almost becoming a high school clique," he said.

Manke noted that the Kalihi-Palama Neighborhood Board finally managed to meet again after years of failure to reach a quorum because of board member absences.

But Manke said the system is working, it just needs improvement.

Neighborhood Board elections are held in odd-numbered years. The two-year terms of office start in June. Members are elected from their neighborhoods by mail-in ballots. Candidates must be at least 18 years old on Jan. 16, 2007, and live in the neighborhood and, sometimes, the subdistrict.

Reach Robbie Dingeman at rdingeman@honoluluadvertiser.com.