Kua O Ka L? Charter School; KSBE Cesspool; HCDA Roads; Bengal Cats; Christmas Trees
Kua O Ka L? Charter School
Lots to be thankful for this holiday season--even with the challenges tied to lava inundation and the recent storms. HPR’s Ku`uwehi Hiraishi joins us with the rocky road ahead for a Big Island charter school.
Intro Music: The World Is Gonna End Tonight by School Is Cool
Outro Music: Paris Trios (Instrumental mix) by Malcome McLaren
KSBE Cesspool
The EPA recently released a list of property owners it either fined or reached an agreement on the closure of large capacity cesspools across the state. Hawaii County is moving to replace a cesspool on the Hamakua coast that serves more than a thousand people. We sat down with the Kamehameha Schools Bishop Estate Big Island Asset Manager Marissa Harmon to understand the deal it struck with the EPA over its vast holdings.
Intro Music: L'arena by Ennio Morricone
Outro Music: You're So Good To Me by Cochmea Gastelum
Reality Check
It’s now time for our segment we call the Reality Check with our partners at Honolulu Civil Beat. Today Political and Opinion Editor Chad Blair joins us with a story about deep sea mining in the Pacific.
Outro Music: Dancing In The Moonlight by Alt-J
HCDA Roads
There are roads across the state that are in limbo because no one can agree who owns them. A drawn-out legal battle over disputed roads in Kakaako has taken a turn and has some questioning why it's taken so long to resolve.
The agency that oversees development of the district moved a step closer to resolving a situation with the Kakaako Land Company. It sent a warning letter July 10 that a bill signed into law requires them to fix the roads to city standards or stop charging for parking. We talked to Aedward Los Banos, head of the Hawaii Community Development Authority about where things stand.
One particularly vocal Kakaako businessman is frustrated it's taken so long for the government to resolve the issue, Bob Emami of The Car Store Inc. on Kawaiahao Street.
A lawsuit filed by a handful of businesses against the Kakaako Land Company
was to have gone to trial in October. It has now been pushed back to April.
Outro Music: Road Head by Japanese Breakfast
Bengal Cats
Bengal cats became a topic of conversation last week after agriculture officials took a closer look at three pets that a family tried to bring into the islands.
But it’s against the law to bring in hybrids which essentially are exotic cats bred with domestic cats. The reason: the threat to our native bird populations which are already stressed. The cats in question: named Lucifer, Antoniette, and Kurios will likely have to be returned to Washington State, where they came from. But it may be a few weeks before that happens. We talked to James Thain, acting land vertebrate specialist at the Plant Quarantine Branch, about the case.
Outro music: Bam, Pt. 2 by Mehrdad Pakbaz
Christmas Trees
If it’s anything the Christmas holiday season teaches is patience! Particularly if you are an Xmas tree grower here in Hawaii.
Ask Aaron O-Brien, whose father started growing trees in Whitmore Village on Oahu’s North Shore. It's been trial and error with no one to lead the way. The Helemano Tree Farm opens the day after Thanksgiving. We stopped by there this weekend as workers were busy sizing and tagging the locally grown tree.
Intro Music: Santa Claus Is Coming To Town by Bruce Springsteen
Outro Music: Christmas Is Coming by the Vince Guaraldi Trio
