• A new year A new year Last year ended on a positive note with the Kaua‘i economy, as well as the Hawai‘i economy, on the upswing. Despite having over 1,500 Christmas trees leftover to turn into compost, Christmas shoppers
• A new year
A new year
Last year ended on a positive note with the Kaua‘i economy, as well as the Hawai‘i economy, on the upswing. Despite having over 1,500 Christmas trees leftover to turn into compost, Christmas shoppers were out in force over this holiday season, a sign of prosperity.
However, the Island still faces a sizable list of problems to solve, or at least a start at solving, over the next 364 days.
Choosing a sole top problem doesn’t work, with drug abuse, lack of affordable housing, long-term traffic jams and the future of our last sugar plantation all coming to mind.
In 2003 the Island became organized in its war against Ice use and other forms of drug abuse, along with a few significant drug busts. This year the hammer must come down hard on the drug dealers who are spreading this problem, and profiting from it. Mayor Bryan Baptiste is working with federal agencies in cracking down on drug dealers; let’s see some action now that the feds are working on Kaua‘i.
The creation of on-island drug treatment facilities for youth and adults is a sidelight to this problem, but one that’s needed to be resolved this year.
News that condominiums rose in price faster than most real estate shows that even housing once available for purchase by average workers is now spiraling out of price range. Finding a way to create affordable housing that can be purchased is a major challenge for business and government this year. This lack of housing is an ongoing social problem that will only get worse if no real action is taken this year. There is a need for alterations to zoning regulations show the infrastructure for affordable subdivisions can be built without having to charge tens of thousands of dollars per unit just for utility lines and roads.
Whether real estate prices will stay high, or even rise, is another factor that needs to be faced in providing housing for the average person as this trend is a driving force in setting property taxes for local residents. With the Mainland economy booming, and the stock market coming back, it’s likely that more affluent buyers will head to Kaua‘i to purchase a second home. This reality is set to be addressed by groups like the Ohana Kauai ad hoc organization.
A breakthrough is needed in creating new ways to break up the traffic bottlenecks leading into and out of Lihu‘e from the north and south. The past week has seen major traffic jams at midday in places where usually only rush hour backups occur. An example of once concept would be that during times of heavy midday traffic, like at Christmastime, the two lanes heading into Lihu‘e from Kapa‘a could be left that way into the early afternoon.
While it’s certain that our traffic jam problem won’t be solved this year, let’s at least take a small bite out of it.
Finally, Gay & Robinson, our last operating sugar plantation, needs to be encouraged and supported in the company’s ongoing battle to stay afloat at a time when the federal government is trying to let more foreign sugar into the United States. The company has diversified into visitor activities, and hopes to refine its own commerical-grade bagged sugar. Let’s hope that this is a year of growth and prosperity for G&R, and not a year when a tradition begun in 1835 ends for Kaua‘i.
