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Tuesday, July 25, 2023

Kaʻū News Briefs, Tuesday, July 25, 2023

View of the Kahuku festival grounds from Puʻu o Lokuana at the 39th annual Hawai'i
Volcanoes National Park Cultural Festival on Saturday. NPS photo
KAHUKU UNIT OF HAWAI'I VOLCANOES HOSTED NEARLY A THOUSAND PEOPLE on Saturday, reports the National Park. Locals, keiki, kūpuna and visitors listened to Hawaiian music, enjoyed hula, tried Hawaiian crafts and practices and learned about native plants and animals during the 39th Annual Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park Cultural Festival.
Keiki Aniyah (left) and Shyla Grohs (right) make birds at the
 Birds Not Mosquitoes exhibit. Photo by Jessica Ferracane/NPS
    Good weather brought sunshine, a welcome cloud cover at times and a light breeze that kept everyone cool during Saturday's festival which started at 10 a.m. and ended at 3 p.m. In attendance were 985 people. Many made lauhala bracelets, or twisted a lei from tī leaves, played Hawaiian games and enjoyed ono kine grindz on the festival grounds with their loved ones.
    "Kahuku is a place of tranquil natural beauty and rich history that most visitors and even locals don't know about," said Park Superintendent Rhonda Loh. "It was heartwarming to see old friends and new faces. Mahalo to everyone who spent their day with us, and especially to our park staff, volunteers and partners who worked hard to make the cultural festival happen."
Young dancers from LoriLeiʻs Hula Studio dance hula at the
2023 Kahuku Cultural Festival. Photo by Jessice Ferracane/NPS
    Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park sends a "heartfelt mahalo to all the performers, including Debbie Ryder's Hālau o Leionalani, Keaīwa, Kenneth Makuakāne, the Kīpapa Sisters, Russell Mauga and Da Kahuku Mauka Boyz, and LoriLei's Hula Studio for their outstanding performances.
    "In addition, a warm mahalo goes to the Kaʻū Multicultural Society, Momi Subiono ʻAha Pūhala o Puna, 4 Scoops of Aloha, and the Hawaiian Civic Club, Birds Not Mosquitoes, and UH Mānoa/J.B. Friday.
    "Another special mahalo to park's non-profit partners, the Friends of Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park (who gave away more than 600 ice shave minis), and to the Hawaiʻi Pacific Parks Association. Both partners co-sponsored the successful festival," says the statement from the Park and its Superintendent.

Putting her best foot forward to make a traditional tī leaf lei at the 39th Annual Cultural Festival this year at Kahuku. NPS Photo


AN OCEAN STEWARDSHIP USER FEE GOES TO PUBLIC HEARINGS on this island Wednesday in person and via zoom at: https://bit.ly/OSUFPH07-26)
    Public hearings will be conducted by state Department of Land & Natural Resources' Division of Aquatics. The proposal is to implement §187A-52, Hawaiʻi Revised Statutes, which requires all operators of commercial vessels, watercraft, and water sports equipment, that are required to have a commercial operator permit or commercial use permit pursuant to HAR §13-256-3, to collect a $1 ocean stewardship user fee from each passenger carried or customer served, and to transfer these fees to DLNR monthly.
    The Wednesday, July 26, hearings will be simultaneous in Hilo at 5:30 p.m. at Aupuni Center Conference Room and in Kona at the West Hawai'i Civic Center, both carried live via zoom. Zoom testimony is allowed by registering at https://bit.ly/OSUFPH07-26).
    Mail or email written testimony by August 4, 2023 to Division of Aquatic Resources, 1151 Punchbowl Street, Room 330, Honolulu, HI 96813, DLNR.Aquatics@hawaii.gov.

MK-Kaʻū Girls Volleyball Club took Gold in the Moku O Keawe tournament and is opening
up for new players, under Head Coach Johnathan Navarro. Photo from MK-Kaʻū Girls Volleyball

MK-KA'U GIRLS VOLLEYBALL CLUB has announced pau season for 2022-2023, and practice for the future under Head Coach Jonathan Navarro and Assistant Coaches Janessa Jara and Ipolani Reyes. The Club is open to new players for the next season that begins in August. Girls can come out and try out during practices at the Herkes Kaʻū District Gym on Mondays and Wednesdays from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.        
MK-Kaʻū Girls came in third in the 2nd Annual
Luau Grass Tournament. Photo from MK Kaʻū Girls
     During the 2022-23 season, MK-Kaʻū Girls Volleyball players competed in many tournaments, taking them to Hilo, O'ahu and Anaheim, CA. They won the Gold Championship for the Moku O Keawe Jr. Regionals and came in second in the Haili Tournament, both at Hilo Civic Auditorium in March.  
    Other tournaments included the AAU Transpacific Champions Tournament on O'ahu where they finished in the Flight 1 Bracket; the Aloha Summer Classic Tournament on O'ahu where they took fifth in the Gold Bracket; the 14th Annual Summer Soiree Tournament in Anaheim, where they were Bronze Champions, placing 13th out of 71 teams in their division; and the 2nd Annual Luau Grass Tournament on O'ahu where they came in third.
    The Club held a banquet on Sunday at Punalu'u Black Sand Beach to recognize each player and accomplishments, as well as mahalo sponsors of the club. Sponsors included FORC Hawaii Restaurant, Hardwoods Hawaii Inc, Hawaiian Macadamia Nut Services, LLC, Punaluu Bake Shop, Mizuno Superette, Apollo Energy Corporation, OKK, Ralph and Tammy Ka'apana,  Alfred Galimba and many families and  friends.  
    "All their generous sponsorship has made a tremendous impact for our club and we would like to express our sincere appreciation, it is truly a blessing," said Club spokesperson Jennifer Navarro. "Through all these sponsorship, we have managed to travel to four different tournaments this year.  We couldn't have done it without all their help and support. We deeply appreciate you all from the bottom of our hearts.  We hope and wish that our club and relationship will be maintained in the future to help these girls be exposed and become the best players that they have always wanted to be. We would like to Congratulate the girls for doing an awesome job representing the Big Island and we are very proud for all the work they have put in to be where they are at now."
     To sponsor, sign up and for more information, contact Jennifer Navarro at 808-747-5894.  

MK-Kaʻū Girls Volleyball Club. Bronze Champions at 14th Annual Summer Soire in Anaheim, CA.  
Photo from MK-Kaʻū Girls Volleyball

To read comments, add your own, and like this story, see facebook.com/kaucalendar. See latest print edition at kaucalendar.com, in the mail and on stands.

Hawaiian Cultural Practitioner Joe Comancho will give the oli to open Experience Volcano Festival this Saturday with
much entertainment, food, arts, activities at many venues over two days. Photo from Experience Volcano Hawai'i

COMANCHO TO OPEN EXPERIENCE VOLCANO ON SATURDAY.  An opening Oli by Hawaiian cultural practitioner Joe Camacho is set for the beginning of the Fourth Annual Experience Volcano Festival at 10 a.m. this Saturday at Volcano Winery, one of the many venues for the two-day event. 


To read comments, add your own, and like this story, see facebook.com/kaucalendar. See latest print edition at kaucalendar.com, in the mail and on stands.

Five thousand in the mail, 2,500 on the street.
See the July edition of The Kaʻū Calendar Newspaper
















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Monday, July 24, 2023

Kaʻū News Briefs, Monday, July 24, 2023

Hawai'i Department of Health produced this visual image noting pesticides as a risk to water quality in Hawai'i. The state
 Department of Agriculture is offering a way to dispose of pesticides for free, no questions asked.

DISPOSING PESTICIDES IN A SAFE WAY IS A COURSE via webinar beginning this Tuesday July 25 from 9 a.m. to 10 a.m., sponsored by Hawai'i state Department of Agriculture. The zoom link is https://hawaii-gov.zoom.us/j/97764030639; or One tap mobile at +16694449171,,97764030639# US;
or Telephone: Dial (for higher quality, dial a number based on location) +1 669 444 9171 US. The webinar ID is 977 6403 0639. International numbers available: https://hawaii-gov.zoom.us/u/adLQYBuFXi
    Adam Williams, Environmental Health Specialist and Project Manager for state Department of Agriculture's Pesticide Disposal Program, said Tuesday's meeting is the start of a series of zoom meetings to discuss the state Pesticide Disposal Program.
State DOA offers option for pescticieds.

    Williams said the program "will provide an available, affordable, and environmentally accessible mechanism by which any agricultural entity, licensed pest control operator, landscape professional, pesticide dealer, and other commercial users of pesticides in the State can, for free, dispose of up to 250 lbs of canceled, suspended, unwanted, and unlabeled ("CSUU") pesticides." He emphasized that " No enforcement action will be taken against participants for disposing of CSUU pesticides."
Pesticides to be disposed could include old pesticides saved from sugar plantation days in Ka'u.
    Williams said, "The goal of the PDP is to promote a cleaner and safer Hawai'i by reducing the amount of pesticides which could potentially impact human health or the environment. The webinar offer discussion on: Acceptable and unacceptable materials; Who's eligible to participate; Getting registered;The event date and time; and Frequently asked questions.
     The online meetings will be held weekly from 9 a.m. to 10 a.m., from this Tuesday, July 25 to Tuesday, Sept. 5.


Pa'a'au Stream, the rocky bed transformed by Army Corps of Engineers. Photo from Army Corps of Engineers
PA'AU'AU DRAINAGE CORRIDOR, WITH PROJECTS BY ARMY CORPS OF ENGINEERS, is the subject of a County Department of Public Works community meeting  on Wednesday, Aug 9 from 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. at  Pahala Community Center. This meeting will discuss the Paʻauʻau flood channels, encroachment issues, and future assistance that may be provided by US Army Corp. The original Pa'au'au Stream Flood Control project in Pahala was completed in October 1984 at a cost of $1,820,279 paid for by the federal government.
      Army Corps of Engineers describes its work here: "The project consists of a levee about 260 feet long; five concrete rubble masonry (CRM) walls totaling 1,800 feet in length; 2,700 feet of boulder concrete slope lining; and floodplain easement and management along the left bank. There are approximately 273 homes located within the project area. To date, the project has prevented more than $1.52 million in projected damages, within the project area. The local sponsor is the County of Hawai‘i, Department of Public Works.


Makana Kamahele will be an artist performing his music at this weekend's Experience Volcano Festival. He
spent years residing in Kaʻū and now lives on O'ahu. He will perform form 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. this Saturday and Sunday
at Volcano Winery, one of the many venues for the festival. Photo from Experience Volcano Hawai'i


To read comments, add your own, and like this story, see facebook.com/kaucalendar.See latest print edition at kaucalendar.com, in the mail and on stands.

Five thousand in the mail, 2,500 on the street.
See the July edition of The Kaʻū Calendar Newspaper







Five thousand in the mail, 2,500 on the street.
See the July edition of The Kaʻū Calendar Newspaper


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Kaʻū News Briefs, Sunday, July 23, 2023

Runners of all ages are invited to enter the Volcano 'Ohi'a Lehua Runs, a 5K and Half-Marathon this Saturday, July 29 as a kickoff to the Experience Volcano Hawai'i two day festival. Photo from Volcano 'Ohi'a Lehua Runs

ENTERING THE VOLCANO 'OHI'A LEHUA RUNS to kick off Experience Volcano Festival next Saturday, July 29 is still possible. While online registration ended on Friday, late registration can be done

at packet pickup locations on Thursday, July 27 at Hilo Brewery from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. and Friday, July 28 at Volcano School of the Arts & Sciences from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m.
    The half-marathon begins Saturday at 7 a.m. with the 5K at 7:15 a.m. taking runners from Volcano School through the Volcano Village and out to the countryside and back through 'ohi'a forest with grand views of Mauna Loa and Mauna Kea. For runner safety partial road closures will be in effect in the Volcano Village area prior to festival hours.

EXPERIENCE VOLCANO FESTIVAL has announced its lineup for close to 60 events at six locations next Saturday and Sunday, July 29 and 30 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. A statement from the organizers says "Experience Volcano Festival is a celebration of the culture, people and traditions that make the diversity of the Volcano Area so unique." It showcases music, Hawaiian culture, artists in action, tours, demonstrations, kids and 'ohana activities, happy hours, restaurant specials, food trucks and more.
    Organizers are Jesse Tunison who is Festival Press & Membership Manager for the Volcano Experience Hawai'i organization. Its President is Chris Becker, Treasurer Jim Wilson and Steering Committee members Barbra Dunn and Janet
Coney.


    Entertainers include: Keoki Kahumoku, Makana Kamahele, Boni Narito, Ola Loa, Mano Ali'i, Genesis Pi'ilani, Fred Hee & Steve Look, Kanaka Fyah, Thom Gagne, Adam Kay, Rocky D'amore, The Screaming Geckos and 'Ukulele for Everyone with Wes Awana.
    Vendors include: Ola’s Creations, Tamisha Lee Glassworks, Ikehu Collective, Ultraviolet Alchemist, Periwinkle Moon, Kamano Woods, Hawaii Oasis: Growing Sustainable, Green Goat Farm, Tupperware, Maikui’s Creations, The Lemon Bar, Diane Hanzel, Monstera Gems Hawaii, TLC Oils, Nani Diaz, Raven & Dover Abrams, Volcano Community Foundation, Eclectic Virgo Creations, Big Island Luffa Farm, Hilo Baykery, Rainbow Repurpose, Kolea Kreations, Luti Fine Arts, Looking Glass, Fused Fragments, Papaya Direct, Aunty Pons Food Truck, Kumiko By Kyrie-Reign, Alchemy Farm Hawai'i, Pukana La Farms, Lakuna Links, Simply Mags Designs, He U’i Designs - Lani Creative, Namakua, Rotary Of Volcano Hawai'i, Scott Pincus, Hawai'i Pacific Parks Association, Eli Lynn Creations, Gnarwhal Artworks, Love Bali By Archer Kelly, Amalie Dorn, Island Hop Designs, Eternal Bonsai Creations, and Tuk Tuk Thai Food Truck.


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See latest print edition at kaucalendar.com, in the mail and on stands.

TAX FOUNDATION OF HAWAI'I has issued an opinion on the idea of helping to solve the housing shortage in Hawai'i by taxing people who leave their homes empty. Tom Yamachika, President and CEO 
of the Tax Foundation, wrote Study the Empty Homes Tax Again? He advises that the idea, a hot topic on O'ahu, could be coming to Hawai'i and other Neighbor Islands. Here it is:
    One concept that has popped up again, more often than the little animals in a Whack-a-Mole game, is the prospect of an “Empty Homes Tax.”
Simply put, if someone owns property here but doesn’t live in it for, say, six months out of the year, then we charge that someone a hefty real property tax surcharge. Why? Because that someone has removed a housing unit from circulation in a place where we really, really need housing units. Just last year, for example, the Honolulu City Council was considering a bill (Bill 9 of 2022) that would have set the tax at 3% of the property value, per year.
    Last year, when we wrote about this development, we pointed out that there would be lots of devils in


the details. How does one hope to enforce such a tax without running roughshod over people’s privacy (which is constitutionally protected in this State)? Do we simply require everyone to file a form, every year, saying that “1234 Aloha Drive is my home, and I have lived in it for more than six months this year,” assume that the folks who haven’t sent the form in have vacant property, and then throw them to the wolves in the City’s tax collection agency? How would we deal with the resulting flood of people who (1) never heard about the new law, form, or tax, (2) figured out that there was a tax and a form, but for whatever reason filed the form too late, or (3) had good reasons for not living in the house, such as being hospitalized for a substantial part of the year?
    This year, the City & County of Honolulu is trying again. They are on the path toward commissioning a study, projected to go out for bid in August, that seeks to determine “why so many homes are vacant, and how a vacant homes tax could benefit Honolulu’s many residents who lack suitable housing. Benefits to be explored should include contributions to a housing fund, discouraging the ‘hoarding’ of empty properties and encouraging owners to rent these properties to Hawai'i households.” The Star-Advertiser appears to be on board with this idea, as it stated in an editorial on July 14th. City officials say that the study will be paid for with federal pandemic relief money, so residents don’t have to worry about its cost.
    First, am I the only one wondering what in the world a vacant homes tax has to do with the COVID-19 pandemic so as to justify funding this study with pandemic relief funds? Second, what about the study done by the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs that the City had done in 2021? Is this new study going to cover the same ground, and if it does, why are we taxpayers getting hit for another one? So that two independent consultants, when the City asks, “Can we, pretty please, impose this tax?,” reply with, “Yeah, we suppose so”?
    If we can’t get out of that second study, we should at least have it address new developments, such as a paper put out by the Grassroot Institute saying, in effect, “Vacant homes don’t cause obscene housing prices, but a screwed-up building permitting system sure does!”
Folks on the Neighbor Islands: Don’t laugh. You might be next!

To read comments, add your own, and like this story, see facebook.com/kaucalendar.
See latest print edition at kaucalendar.com, in the mail and on stands.


Five thousand in the mail, 2,500 on the street.
See the July edition of The Kaʻū Calendar Newspaper







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