LIHU‘E — The state Legislature showed the County of Kaua‘i the money. But two governors have said the island can’t have it. The state Legislature years ago approved $950,000 for Kaua‘i to use toward improvements in the Emergency Bypass road
LIHU‘E — The state Legislature showed the County of Kaua‘i the money. But two governors have said the island can’t have it.
The state Legislature years ago approved $950,000 for Kaua‘i to use toward improvements in the Emergency Bypass road in the Wailua corridor. The county matched the funds and added $50,000 to be used as a project study. But the state funds are nowhere to be seen.
Former Gov. Linda Lingle vetoed the release of the funds, and Gov. Neil Abercrombie followed suit, indicating in writing the funds would not be released, according to County Managing Director Gary Heu.
If in six months the funds are not released, “it’s aloha,” County Council Chair Jay Furfaro said at a council meeting Wednesday. June 30 is the expiration date for the funds to be used, according to Heu.“It’s not the best news story in terms of where we are,” Heu said.
The latest information on the funds indicates they were transferred to another source, according to Heu. Although the funding was earmarked for the county of Kaua‘i, the administration received a note from the state Attorney General that the money cannot be released, he said.
Heu said that in the worst-case scenario, he would go back to the state Legislature to ask for an appropriation. In the meantime, the administration is dealing with the state Department of Transportation, trying to seek options, and talking with the Governor’s Office, which has the power to approve the funds.
Until the administration has access to the $950,000 or finds other ways of funding the emergency bypass, “we’re pretty much in limbo,” Heu said.
Part of the bypass belongs to the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands, and another portion belongs to Grove Farm Company. Heu said that once a month, county workers go through the bypass to make sure it is usable.
In May, during the budget review sessions, Heu had told council members that first Lingle and then Abercrombie had given the county written notices that the money would not be released, but that Mayor Bernard Carvalho Jr. had requested Abercrombie to reconsider.
Furfaro, “disappointed” that County Engineer Larry Dill did not attend a request to give the council a briefing on the emergency bypass status, said he would have preferred that the county engineer would have an estimate for the cost of improving the road.
There is normal repair work to be done each year in the bypass, and the council has gotten nothing from the administration, Furfaro said, adding that for the $50,000 appropriated, he was hoping he would be able to have an estimate on the work that needs to be done.
“We heard nothing from engineering in terms of costing,” Furfaro said.
Heu said the administration’s focus has been on trying to find out where the state funds are, but they can go back and pretend they are not going to get the $950,000. “It’s my hope the state (government) will come back to the table and share its responsibility,” he said.
Councilman Mel Rapozo questioned the legality of the state holding on the funds.
In the meantime, each time that an accident occurs on Kuhio Highway in the Wailua Corridor, drivers can use the existing emergency bypass, but only during daylight hours and after someone comes to unlock the gates. The road, partly paved, has many potholes and is only drivable at low speeds.
