Ka`u News Birefs Jan. 16, 2011

Volcano Skate Park is the subject of a meeting on Jan. 31 to discuss reopening the facility next to Cooper Center.

THE VOLCANO SKATE PARK has been shut down by the county Department of Parks and Recreation. It is located next to Cooper Center on Wright Road. According to the county, it is closed until further notice due to maintenance and safety concerns.  A meeting will be held at Cooper Center on Monday, Jan. 31 at 6 p.m. to discuss safety standards. The skate park was transported from Hilo to Volcano in 2003 and 2004 and rebuilt without building permits, as there are no standards in the building code for skate parks.

      Skateboardpark.com describes it as one of only two skate parks on the island, located in a very remote area off of Route 11 just before Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park.  It describes the covered park is good as it often rains. It is made of Masonite and at times the wood is in bad shape and needs to be fixed. However, skateboardpark.com says it has a “very nice layout with lots of ramps, angles, stairs, and coping for grinding, which doesn't lay real well in the masonite so the transition isn't smooth.” The website calls it a very nice park for a remote area. 

The location of the new Ocean View well and fill station to be completed by Oct. 3.

 THE REPORT ON THE INVESTIGATION of the Ocean View water project called for by Rep. Robert Herkes has been made available to the public on the Internet and presented to the state legislature, which opens its 2011 session this Wednesday. The report says that the Investigative Committee believes that the speedy completion of the water system is in the best interest of the Ocean View community.

      In its background report, the committee describes Ocean View as having about 5,000 residents in Kahuku – a remote rural community located in one of the driest and most drought-stricken areas of the state. The community has no central distribution point for residents’ water supply. Instead, residents must rely on catchment or water delivery to their homes to meet their water needs.

Rep. Bob Herkes

      It points out that funds to develop water were approved by the legislature during the administration of Gov. Ben Cayetano, who served from 1994 – 2002, but funds were never released.  Again, funds were approved in 2005 and released in 2006 to the county. Design and management changes plagued the project, but the investigative committee reports progress in recent months, including grading and preparing the filling station site and access road; connecting the pipeline from wellhead to filling station; buying a submersible pump; submitting plans for the 300,000 gallon concrete storage tank; arranging with the electric company for power for the filling station; planning protective landscaping and fencing to preserve privacy of homes nearby; and by setting a completion date of Oct. 3.

      The investigative committee urges the county to enter into a formal agreement with the Department of Water Supply or the Ocean View Community for the ongoing operation of the water system and filling station.

KA`U MAIN STREET hosts its monthly Plant and Seed Exchange today at the historic Naohulelua Church garden on Kamaoa Road from noon to 3 p.m.

THIS IS A REMINDER TO PICK up applications for Miss Ka`u Coffee 2011, Miss Ka`u Peaberry and Little Miss Ka`u Coffee. Prospective contestants can pick them up Kahuku Gift and Garden Shop in Ocean View, Grandma's Closet in Na`alehu, Pahala Community Center and R&G Store in Pahala. Applications are being accepted through Wednesday, Jan. 26. For Miss Ka`u Coffee, girls contestants must be ages 17 to 24; for Little Miss Ka`u Coffee ages 10 to12 and Miss Ka`u Peaberry ages 7 to 9. The age category is determined by the age of the contender on May 13, 2011. Each contestant’s main residence must be in the district of Ka`u. Call Gloria Camba at 928-8558, Nalani Parlin at 217-6893 or Nona Makuakane at 928-3102. Posters about the pageant can be seen around Ka`u.