Hawaiian Shore's speed bumps

[Whitey]

@afwjam - I sure hope you are right, but that hasn't been the case so far! That 1% is pretty slick and the 99% are asleep.

Wake up people or live with it!

[ishkabibble]

@ afwjam: The 99% did figure it out and we did do something about it. We voted out the BOD last year. We didn't want Watchdog and the DOOM turning HSCA into their WALL STREET that only benifits her 1% of the members. POWER TO THE PEOPLE. NOT JUST 9 BOD.

[Guest]

quote:

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Originally posted by ishkabibble

@ afwjam: The 99% did figure it out and we did do something about it. We voted out the BOD last year. We didn't want Watchdog and the DOOM turning HSCA into their WALL STREET that only benifits her 1% of the members. POWER TO THE PEOPLE. NOT JUST 9 BOD.

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I don't know or care about the last board or president or whatever, that is not my fight. I am talking about the speed bumps which seem to be the preference of a couple people who live on the highway, at the expense of the many more people who live in the neighborhood behind it. I was told it was put to a vote, a vote by who? The current board? Did someone send out a letter to all the residents informing them that speed bumps were up for a vote on the highway? I do not remember getting it. I just want to be left alone, I had no interest in the local politics before, now I do, I am being negatively affected.

[critterlover]

@afwjam, all things roads, water and parks are always under the auspices of the Board of Directors who are seated and tasked with management and maintenance. Whether they defer to the Members is dependent on them if it is not clearly spelled out in the BLs. That has been the issue for so very many years. The Members live and let live; some vote during the annual election - most don't; many have not read or do not fully understand the governing documents. The Members believe that because this is a Membership that everything needs to be put out there for the Members to approve or disapprove. While it would be nice for everything to happen that way it would be costly and time consuming and the documents from which the Association takes its authority did not require such from any Board. The facts, in my opinion, more members need to show up at the meetings; prepare for the meetings by reading the agenda and asking questions or follow the discussions and if something doesn't 'feel' or 'seem' right to ask the Board for clarification.

The discussion about the speed humps happened at Board level over several meetings and during the Infrastructure Committee meetings over several meetings. When they had gathered the bids; cleared it with the first responders and county roads director and everything was as done as it could be -- save the actual humps themselves -- the Board chose to permit the owners to pay for the 3 humps themselves. They had a couple of residents there who spoke in support of the humps on their street and understood they'd have to pitch in their fair share. It was at any one or all of these meetings that members could/should have spoken to the issue that concerned them.

The only issue I have with the whole ordeal is that yet another Board set yet another precedent in allowing owner residents to alter and/or build upon a community asset. As one of the Directors pointed out, during the discussion, before the vote was taken "The members will then be responsible for the maintenance of something they did not have a voice in approving." He argued his point vigorously but as 1 vote against a majority he stood no chance of winning. In the democracy of this community that director represented those in the community who would have an objection to putting in the humps and committing Membership treasures to the maintenance and management of something they did not have a voice in approving. The majority vote that prevailed represented those who find no issue with it or who applaud it. There is only one way to change that dynamic.

The traffic safety issues are important actually but that is a discussion for another time and place.

Using the logic that since it is on HSCA community property the association must now maintain and manage would necessarily require any and all things sitting on our collective community property to be maintained and managed by HSCA. I will sit on my hands now..

Question Authority!

[critterlover]

@Whitey said: The same applies to building/buying on the highway and expecting it to be a country lane!

That brought back such a fun memory! The first time my daughter and I came over to begin our move from California we were down on red road. We'd stopped along the road to go stick our toes in the little tidal pools. We sat there in disbelief of the crystal clear water; the brisk trade winds and the strong scent and view of the Pacific. After we'd had enough sun on our virgin skin we got up to walk back to the car. I personally detest sand on my person anywhere so I stopped and slapped my flip flops with sufficient force to knock the sand off. The two of us were right in the middle of the road just gabbing and slapping sand off our flip flops when I happened to look up and saw a 'state hwy' sign with a state hwy number designating the very road we'd been in the middle of all that time! I burst into laughter and startled my daughter...I pointed to the sign and asked her if she could imagine us dilly dallying in the middle of any state hwy in California without being hit by a car. Even the PCH up in the mountains away from the cities is fairly busy enough one would never just stand there stomping sand out of your shoes!

We do live somewhere that a sense of 'country' overrides the factual designation of a place. I have learned something during all of this; I was unaware that Papio street was considered a 'hwy'. I understood that it was a hwy on the Kapoho side of the community but did not realize or know that the designation carried through onto our private road. How in the world was that privatized if it is a hwy? I am constantly amazed at the seeming irregularities of such things.

Question Authority!

[Guest]

I don't doubt it was done according to the procedure whatever the procedure is. Now what is the procedure to undo it? I am sorry I am late to the party, I frankly would appreciate as little government as possible, mainly to prevent stupidity, corruption and the waste of capital that comes with it. So in all seriousness what do I need to do now? A petition? Talk to the board? I generally wish neighbors could be friendly but more importantly, leave other people alone. Routing traffic into a neighborhood from a highway is not neighborly or nice. It was fine, why **** with it? People get all excited about these progressive changes not bothering to think for the three minutes required to figure out that there could be extensive negative impact and then its SOOOO hard to undo.

[Guest]

It is very easy to see here on google maps where the highway runs, its Papio st. not coastal puna pkwy.
http://maps.google.com/maps?q=papio+st.+,+Pahoa,+HI&hl=en&ll=19.558577,-154.888301&spn=0.01381,0.019548&sll=19.557768,-154.885769&sspn=0.05524,0.078192&vpsrc=6&hnear=Papio+St,+Hawaiian+Beaches,+Hawaii,+96778&t=h&z=16

[Guest]

its a very simple concept to grasp. Their chief complaint is the traffic, that is logical because they live on a highway. Traffic on a road like this is much like water in a river, its been traveling down the same strip for hundreds of years, the rate only increasing with the population. If you want to move a highway that is one thing, it takes a lot of planning and money. Putting speed bumps in the highway in some attempt to slow or divert the traffic is absurd. The traffic(think water in a river) will find a much more destructive way of getting to its destination and have numerous negative consequences. Just like almost every dam or levy ever built, it ends up being a monumentally stupid idea. you can't fight nature like this.

[critterlover]

awfjam said: I don't doubt it was done according to the procedure whatever the procedure is. Now what is the procedure to undo it? I am sorry I am late to the party,

Me: Please accept my apologies if what I said seemed pointed. It was not. I was speaking in generalities.

afwjam said: I frankly would appreciate as little government as possible, mainly to prevent stupidity, corruption and the waste of capital that comes with it.

Me: I could not agree more. Seriously.

afwjam asked: So in all seriousness what do I need to do now? A petition? Talk to the board?

Me: Good question. A petition to have a special meeting of the Members would take you tons of time and you'd have to find about 60 members in good standing who care enough to have a meeting for the purpose of a vote to remove the speed humps at no cost to the Membership. That may be tough to do. Talk to the board? You could, but to what end? The majority on the Board voted FOR this. Given two sitting directors have homes on that street and wanted to install the humps it may be yet another waste of your time. There was one director who did exhibit a bit of remorse for his vote. If you speak to him privately that may help. He serves as the vice president. That is one way.

The time has come and gone to include it as an agenda item on the upcoming Annual Member Meeting but usually there is an open forum where members can speak to these sorts of concerns. The Board will be approving the materials going out to the members on Thursday, November 10 and you could make a verbal request that it be added to the Agenda. They don't have to add it because it is past the deadline but no harm in asking. I think your best bet now would be to spend the next few months talking to your neighbors, friends and members at the meetings developing an interest in the speed humps and encourage them to show up at the Annual Member Meeting on January 21, 2012 to join you in speaking to this issue before the Members gathered.

There is one other way but...it may be best to try one of the above first.

Thanks for the google link. I will look it over.

Question Authority!

[oink]

afwjam, looking at the map you linked, I'm surprised Papia St. isn't a County Road. How did it happen that it isn't? Is it private just through that neighborhood?

Pua`a
S. FL
Big Islander to be.