Stimulus projects

[Rob Tucker]

Aloha Glen,

HPP has a number of twenty acre parcels dedicated to various purposes. There is land specified for parks and there is other land specified for commercial development.

[PaulW]

HPP is considered a "economically disadvantaged area"??

[Sean]

I gotta' say that the first project that caught my eye was repaving the "highly deteriorated" Kaiminani road and I was on that road today. It doesn't even come close to "highly deteriorated" and it saddens me to see that the people in the government who are supposed to ensure the projects are truly needed are sleeping on the job (and yes there are people in the government who do treat the money with respect). The Saddle Road project is needed, assuming the MP's listed are for the South Kohala stretch.

A park in HPP sounds good, but who owns the land? I thought that the HPPHOA owned the 20 acre parcels in HPP, but I'm not sure. Can the HOA even receive a CDBG? Brief research seems to indicate that unless the HOA doubles as a "a Community-based Development Organization" the answer is no. I wonder if the 20 acre parcel have been declared blighted by the County (or a slum)...

Pahao and a new police station -sounds good if the current station is in bad shape. A new station for the simple purpose of putting it next to the fire station doesn't sound like a good use of taxpayer money.

Hey, how about a new station in HPP? Or a new Post Office there? How do I add those to the list? Maybe on the next stimulus go around.

Cheers,

Sean

[ric]

Dakine, I just can't figure out how I "proved your point" when you have none. Without so-called "greedy corporations", there'd be no medicine, no creature comforts, and no internet... so whatever kind of solution you are advocating sounds pretty backwards to me.

[Menehune]

Aloha - Dakine, ric!

Gentlemen - this topic has great value and importance to PUNA! Your tit for tat exchange has NONE! Please take it outside - start your own topic you both have good points buried in your rehtoric BUT when you post - post ALOHA & HAWAII!

Mahalo!




"Each thing I do I rush through so I can do something else" - Cemetery Nights/Stephen Dobyns

[Kelena]

Sean --- I do have the impression that some of these projects were just thrown out there in haste. If I recall, HPP does own the 20 acres (Rob indicates more than one parcel) and has plans to basically cede them to the right entity, organization or person. One parcel on 5th has been an object of interest. I would rather see a police station in HPP obviously, but I guess I didn't realize that Pahoa already had one. If so, I would rather see a new one in HPP than a gold-plated one in Pahoa. I also don't really like the location in Pahoa. It shouldn't be behind anything but should be visible. (That area is kind of a hangout though).

[David M]

Shouldn't these projects be evaluated by the same criteria?

1. How many new jobs created (based on $$$/job)? How many current jobs saved?
2. How much locally produced material used? How much material procured through local sources?
3. What is the multiplier effect? Jobs? Businesses?

Those projects that produce the best true numbers get done.

My guess is, the projects done will get done by the same folks that currently do them, - no new jobs. Prices paid for materials will drive up prices. Very little multiplier effect and very little, if any, long term benefit.

David

Ninole Resident

[Aaron S]

quote:

---

Originally posted by Sean

I gotta' say that the first project that caught my eye was repaving the "highly deteriorated" Kaiminani road and I was on that road today. It doesn't even come close to "highly deteriorated" and it saddens me to see that the people in the government who are supposed to ensure the projects are truly needed are sleeping on the job (and yes there are people in the government who do treat the money with respect). The Saddle Road project is needed, assuming the MP's listed are for the South Kohala stretch.

---

I live near Kaiminani Drive.It is in very very very bad shape. Are you sure you are not getting Kaiminani mixed up with Hina lani. Which is better shape than Kaiminani. However the upper part by the future Kaloko Heights subdivision is in bad shape.

The m.m for the Saddle Road resurfacing are indeed for the m.m 44- Mamamalahoa Highway stretch in South kohala.

[Bob Orts]

David, you touched on one of the biggest question now being raised over these projects. How many real jobs will it create, and will these jobs be local jobs? Will the money be a direct stimulus to the local, state, or national economy?

Do we want a project creating 10 local $35,000 a year jobs or a project creating only 2 local $35,000 a year job and 2 $150,000 a year job for mainland consultants?

I also question if the jobs created will be local or if it will be so specialized that the project will be importing temporary workers, only for them to be sending the bulk of their wages back home.

On the mainland, because of interstate commerce, one state may buy stuff from another state and that state may buy it from the other state. Over time its spread around. But how many bags of Kona coffee, cans of Macadamia nuts, or containers of lava rocks will be purchased by mainland states for their projects? Odds are Hawaii's stimulus will benefit other states at a disproportionate rate over mainland states stimulus spending benefiting Hawaii.

Personally, I would rather have seen the money earmarked for employment at a huge level. Something along the lines of having peopled paid to do things versus spending money on expensive material. Spending $1,000,000 on a project with ½ of it in non local material isn’t as good an expenditure as taking that $1,000,000 and hiring 28 people at $35,000 to clean the shoreline, roadsides, replace broken signs, wash school buses, do traffic counts, etc.

[Greg]

If the county were to seriously pursue a zero waste policy, hundreds of jobs would be created for local residents. (Remember the $125 million we almost spent on solid waste?)