$1.5 million toward a coastal road into Puna?

[Loren Baker]

In reading all of these posts, a common thread has come to mind. Stay involved and voice your opinion at public hearings and forums, not just on the blogs. If we don't come together with a collective voice, the government, at whichever level, will do whatever they want to do. The general message I'm receiving here is that we really aren't planning for the future, we are playing catch-up.

I once heard Rob Tucker mention that someday in the future we can conceivably have 150,000 people living in the Puna district alone. Let's not have our children and grandchildren playing catch-up for the next fifty years.

If I am successful in my bid for a seat on the council, I will sit down with each of you, or your community groups, to take the message to the council as a whole on what the people of Puna want done regarding PMAR. Majority rules, of course, so some of you will be disappointed. That is life in a democracy. This needs to go to our state representatives, also.

But I see our lack of infrastructure as a major concern here. Some of you disagree with me. So be it. I hear a lot of NIMBY being played out. I didn't want Ainaloa Blvd. opened around the clock either, as I knew traffic would increase dramatically. Guess what, it did! Oh, well. At least we have a somewhat alternative route. And guess who uses it? I do. And in an emergency, if the road is passable, I will use it then, too. So will a lot of other citizens.

My message to everyone, keep it up, and stay active.

Apathy is the worst political disease in our country today.

Loren Baker
baker4puna.com