Question: Will veterans be allowed to attend the Fourth of July activities at Schofield Barracks? I was denied entry last year with my Department of Veterans Affairs card at the gate. Veterans served our country and should be allowed to attend.
Q: Will Schofield Barracks ever welcome the community again for the Fourth of July, like they used to do for many years?
Answer: Yes and yes. The “4th of July Spectacular” at Schofield Barracks’ Weyand Field will be open to the general public this year, for the first time since 2012, said Dennis C. Drake, director of public affairs for U.S. Army Hawaii and the U.S. Army Garrison Hawaii.
The celebration will run from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m., with fireworks scheduled for 8:30 p.m., Drake said. The free admission includes two live concerts (Tyler Farr at 3:30 p.m. and Natalie Imbruglia at 5:05 p.m.), plus a variety of other entertainment.
There will be food and drinks for sale, plus a carnival with rides and games, a petting zoo, pony rides and a craft fair.
The general public (non-Department of Defense cardholders) must enter through Foote Gate on Kunia Road; use the right lane. Once on the Wahiawa base, community members will park on Watts Field and be shuttled to the event.
Backpacks, coolers and bags will be subject to search before entering the field. Prohibited items include pets, glass containers, distilled spirits, personal fireworks or sparklers, weapons of any type (handguns, rifles, knives, bow and arrows, etc.) and open-flame or charcoal cooking (except in reserved tailgating and picnic areas).
This is the 46th year for the annual patriotic festivities, which were enjoyed by Oahu’s military and civilian community alike for many years before 2013. That year, attendance was limited to DOD cardholders and their authorized guests, due to security and capacity concerns, and the restrictions remained in place each successive Fourth of July until now.
DOD cardholders include current service members and their families, military retirees and civilians employed by the Defense Department — but not all U.S. veterans, such as the first reader, who served during the Vietnam War era but didn’t stay in the military long enough to achieve retiree status.
This change is sure to please him and numerous other Kokua Line readers who have asked similar questions the past few summers.
Q: What government agency do I contact about high-pitched noise from a neighbor’s water pump? We live in Kaimuki. The lot next door has a front and back house. The owner tore down the small back house and built a big two-story house. They installed a water pump outside because they needed to pump more water to the back house. The pump makes a lot of noise. It is very disturbing and puts us on edge. There are about four 20-year-old men and a family living in the new big back house. … How can we get the noise stopped or muffled?
A: If bothersome noise from stationary equipment — such as water pumps, air conditioners, generators and exhaust fans — has persisted since the equipment was installed and your neighbor refuses to address the problem, call the Department of Health’s Noise Section to lodge a complaint. The number is 586-4700.
Mahalo
I was exercising at Ala Moana Park on Sunday after Saturday’s Hokule‘a extravaganza. A huge mahalo to the Parks team for cleaning the park to a fare-thee-well. It looked like they used tweezers to manicure all the lawns. The park is always well maintained, but it was striking how spotless everything was. — David Wagner, Honolulu
Write to Kokua Line at Honolulu Star-Advertiser, 7 Waterfront Plaza, Suite 210, 500 Ala Moana Blvd., Honolulu 96813; call 529-4773; fax 529-4750; or email kokualine@staradvertiser.com.
