Try to help businesses hurt by rail

They’ve known it’s been coming for a long time, but now it’s real, with reality measured in lost business traffic and revenues.

The construction of the rail alignment along Farrington and Kamehameha highways undeniably has affected the communities from Waipahu to Aiea, and the need for heightened attention on the affected businesses should be a call to action by city officials, and by the rail authority.

The Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation (HART) has heard an earful of complaints from a group of Waipahu businesses feeling the pinch when a left-turn into their Farrington Highway parking lot was blocked during construction.

Adding to the doleful chorus last week were the managers of Flamingo Restaurant, who said the rail construction was a factor in the closure of the longstanding Pearl City eatery.

And the impact of the 20-mile elevated rail project has only begun. Such worries are sure to intensify as arterial roadways become blocked closer and closer to Honolulu.

State transportation officials should work with HART and its contractors to determine whether a safe left turn can be made again into the area around 94-903 Farrington Hwy. That is where Tanioka’s Seafoods and Catering, 808 Automotive, Honolulu Kitchen and other businesses have reported sharply declining business.

Although drivers can circle back to those businesses through a turn a short distance down Farrington, anyone who has ventured into the area knows that the crushing traffic would discourage people from making a return trip.

There is a business outreach program underway, but some of its elements should have been rolled out months earlier. At the very least, the pace of business mitigation — whether from HART or other players in the rail project, must accelerate now.

What businesses need most is some financial cushioning to tide them through, and city officials need to find creative ways to make funding available.

Other transit authorities have created such cushions. To name just one, one Los Angeles Metro expansion project has a Business Interruption Fund to provide financial assistance to "mom and pop" businesses located along the line. The existing Metro project has operational funds available — $10 million annually — for the program, with qualifying businesses in line for up to $50,000 a year.

This is not the case in Honolulu.

HART officials have explored more than a dozen mitigation plans designed for other cities, said spokeswoman Jeanne Mariani-Belding, but different strategies are needed here.

HART Executive Director Dan Grabauskas said in a June 4 letter to City Council Chairman Ernie Martin that Federal Transit Administration officials have nixed the use of its funds for business mitigation.

Nor does state law allow the use of the general excise tax funds for anything other than capital costs and compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act requirements of construction, Grabauskas added.

Still, the Council must examine how to overcome this obstacle, and is doing so through Bill 42, which seeks to create a mitigation fund. Further, Resolution 15-118 would establish a policy to "implement mitigation assistance and technical services programs" for businesses under strain because of the rail project.

Considering property tax relief for affected businesses also could be on the Council agenda, as well as finding grants or other sources for the mitigation fund.

HART and the contractor, Kiewit, has been meeting regularly with businesses, providing detour maps for their customers and generally keeping them apprised of construction plans and timetables, Mariani-Belding said.

In addition, there are programs designed to help the businesses entice more customers who may be deterred from approaching the construction zone. Some of these have been outlined in business meetings, including one Friday at Pearlridge Center. Among its components:

» "Open for business" initiatives include promotional signage, maintenance of business access and workarounds accommodating busy times, deliveries and other considerations.

» A Business Alliance Program provides marketing workshops, social media training and business management tools. Tours of the rail alignment are sponsored, with pit stops for participants to patronize businesses.

» "Shop and Dine on the Line" is a program of customer promotions, coupons and other supports to drive business to the area.

» Transit-themed block parties are designed to spur excitement about the project and attract customers for the shops.

» A "Swap, Shop and Shuttle" program is planned for a monthly shuttle service on scheduled days of no construction work. Customers would park at Aloha Stadium and ride a shuttle to the business centers.

This represents a start, but there’s no time to lose in ramping up some out-of-the-box thinking.

Rail can be a boon to businesses after all the construction, but only if they survive. They need to be given a fighting chance to do just that.