Millions in federal funds headed to Kaua‘i

Senator Daniel Inouye and Hawai‘i’s Congressional contingent has once again brought home the bacon.

More than $602 million in federal funds is coming to Hawai‘i through the Fiscal Year 2005 Omnibus Appropriations Bill.

Millions of dollars are headed to Kaua‘i through the bill.

Here are the approved projects that will benefit Kaua‘i:

• Agriculture development and resource conservation: $740,000. Expands a program that trains new businesses in sustained agri-businesses to the neighbor islands, including Kaua‘i.

• Rural bus service: $5 million. For neighbor island counties, to improve rural bus service on the Big Island, Maui and Kaua‘i.

• Lihue Air Traffic Control tower: $2 million in funding for site selection and design of a new standard design tower. The existing tower was built more than 30 years ago and designed in an era when inter-island and Mainland jet flights were just starting to come to Kaua‘i. The runway has since been extended and a new instrument landing runway has been constructed, making it tough to see the primary instrument runway.

• Hawaii High Intensity Drug Trafficing Area: $2.5 million. Continues the program which serves as a federal, state and local coordination umbrella for counter-drug efforts. Includes increased intelligence ops on Kaua‘i and the Big Island in order to fight crystal meth.

• Homeless Emergency Shelter and Transitional Housing: $250,000. Goes to Kaua‘i Economic Opportunity Homeless Outreach program to restore several buildings to serve as emergency and transitional housing for individuals and families. Kaua‘i is the only county in Hawai‘i without a homeless shelter.

• East Kaua‘i Watershed Improvement Project: $250,000. For the Hawaii Nature Center to develop improvements for the entire East Kaua‘i Watershed, including a environmental education center, watershed restoration and education.

Phil Hayworth, Business Editor, can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 251) and mailto:phayworth@pulitzer.net.