Residents of a narrow lane off Kuakini Street today repeatedly stood in front of digging equipment to block it and refused to move their cars in an attempt to slow or stop what they say is illegal contracting work threatening their homes.
The residents of tiny Huna Street, the only access to the nearly completed Nuuanu Park Place condominium near Nuuanu Stream, since last week have been opposing work on a water line for the apartment project.
Some today kept their cars moving in and out of the street so the workers would have to constantly stop what they were doing and move equipment out of the way.
The residents said that on Thursday, when they first parked cars in a way that would block work, the contractor’s employees jacked the cars up, shifted them on to dollies and parked them illegally in the entrances of homes.
They said they fear that access to the condominium will eventually mean the loss of their homes since the street is too small to handle the traffic.
And they said the developer and the contractor for the water pipe did not have proper permits to do the work.
Michael McElroy, director of the city Department of Land Utilization, was at the site this morning and agreed that permits were not in order.
He said a "street usage permit" was issued for the contractor to bring equipment in and out, provided it did not hinder residents’ use of Huna Street and the exit lane, Huli Street.
But that permit "does not extend to digging the street," said McElroy, representing Mayor Eileen Anderson, who was at the site herself Saturday to study the residents’ complaints.
"I guess you can see the feelings are pretty high here," said McElroy, as residents, many of them elderly, milled around and stood in front of equipment drivers were trying to operate, while half a dozen police officers watched. …
McElroy said there also is a question about ownership of the street. He said it appears to be a private street and "it is not clear they (the contractors) have permission of the owners" to excavate for the water line.
McElroy said city departments are checking into permits and the legality of the work.
