Tourist numbers are up, we are encouraging a greater increase with more non-stop flights to Kona from the mainland and now international flights from Asia. Good for Kona’s and the Big Island’s economy.
However, some things have been forgotten or lag far behind the number of visitors we are encouraging, not to mention the growth of people who move and actually live here. Our infrastructure and lack of affordable housing drags far behind the load that we are encouraging on our island.
Some of the problems I see:
* Water supplies not adequate and water repairs too slow, costly, and not planned for. Water main and pump failures that will begin happening regularly as they do now on Oahu. (As I was writing this, the County Civil Defense sent out a major emergency restriction for North Kona District customers at 4 p.m. June 29, that the Keahuolu well went out of service due to the loss of a pump.)
* Poor planning and lack of attention to waste disposal as our use of cesspools has now been restricted and the county has not provided adequate sewer systems.
* Lack of roads. We have lived here for 25 years and the only new main roads constructed in Kona have been Henry Street, Ana Keohokalole Highway, and Alii Highway.
* Lack of maintenance for the roads we do have. Prime examples are the terrible condition of Henry Street and Kuakini Highway.
The largest growth in the state both in population and in visitors last year was on the Big Island, but we are not doing much to meet that growth. Our state legislators did not support us in keeping the TAT amount at status quo, not to mention getting it back to the original levels, which the counties deserve.
Our mayor and County Council are now raising both property taxes and gasoline taxes, putting the burden on the working class constituents who can’t afford to buy a home, will have to pay higher rents and have too drive many miles to work.
The gasoline tax is supposed to be used for transportation needs, but it is distributed based on the amount of roads in each district. Does anyone see the irony here? Hilo gets more money because they have more roads, they have more roads because they have received more money to build them. Why not base the distribution on needs? Clearly, where there is more population growth and more visitors there will be more need for roads and the infrastructure that accompanies it.
Kona traffic gets really bogged down when we combine more commuters, more school traffic, more residents, with more visitors. Will the long-overdue widening of Queen Kaahumanu Highway (thanks to the state) help?
Somewhat, perhaps. Or will the congestion just be shifted elsewhere?
More people, visitors or residents, means more demand on our infrastructure. The county has fallen far behind. Perhaps today’s water restriction notice is a sign of things to come. When the guests of our hotels cannot get water and the beautiful landscaping is dying from lack of water, the Big Island may not be as attractive as the tourist industry makes it and as it should be.
Mr. Mayor and County Council, we’ll be watching how you spend our money.
Dan Sabo is a resident of Kailua-Kona