1. Traffic. The board has taken the position of supporting rail because it thinks rail is another alternative to getting us in and out of our community.

Current and pending infrastructure projects are also headed in the right direction: freeway improvements, finally opening of the old North South Road and the new Kapolei Interchange.

We have four to five major road projects being worked on right now; they’ll certainly help alleviate traffic. The North South Road has helped Kapolei, as well as Waipahu and Ewa Beach.

We realize that Kapolei is not a city that sits all by itself; we have to relate to our neighboring communities, especially since our neighbors enjoy the amenities that we have.

Ingress and egress in the area have improved and are more convenient.

2. Growth. We’ve had a tremendous amount of growth but because we knew we were going to be this new city, we worked to be united. It’s a work in progress. We’re not done yet; it’ll continue for the next 10 years or so. We will continue to have growing pains.

3. UH-West Oahu is probably the biggest and brightest thing in the future for Kapolei because it brings hope. This area has a large concentration of young families, and this is something our keiki can aspire to. We have to be persistent and persevere. We recognize that UHWO and the Kroc Center will be big boosts for the community, and that they will bring more traffic — so that’s why infrastructure is so important.

4. The Kroc Center, between Kapolei and Ewa Beach, is expected by the end of 2011. It’s like a blessing that fell out of the sky. The Kroc people and the community came together to realize this huge community center that will help families to grow mentally, physically and spiritually. It’s going to have dorms so sports teams can come to compete and have a place to stay. There are also cultural things, a daycare center, aa senior center and a worship center.

5. Hoopili. As a board, we discuss transportation and traffic. D.R. Horton has come to us with its updates and intentions. Anything that gets built, the question is, how does this relate to traffic?

6. Kalaeloa is another gem in our community. We hear how it’s working toward redevelopment and revitalizing the area; thousands of folks may be coming there.

7. Ko Olina. This was a negative issue in the past. For a while, Ko Olina was stalemated, it was sort of just there and no one knew what was happening. What it’s done is bring lots of job opportunities for folks along the Leeward Coast, and now more, with Disney coming in with timeshares, and business opportunities for our merchants, stores and restaurants. When we have Disney and Ko Olina, that’ll reinforce that people want to invest in our community.

8. Education. We are such a young-family-oriented community, and our population keeps growing. Before schools even have a chance to be built, the demand is already there, and the schools already are too small. We do have a lot of aloha for the principals — they are doing their creative best to get our kids educated. School administrators are always advocating for our kids, and they never give up. It’s a partnership that people here recognize and value.

SO SPECIAL

City of the future

The future of Kapolei is so bright. It’s not about this generation; it’s about future generations, about sustainability, about all the things we are trying to achieve that our state and county should have achieved long ago.

You look around at Kapolei and it’s certainly different from what’s been built anywhere in Honolulu — in a good way. This city was built with a lot of input from the community. It’s a true partnership of city, state, developers, commercial and private businesses.

Drive through the area and you’ll see that it’s a pretty community, in how the buildings are built and what’s around them — the really pretty parks, for example, and the police station with the hula dancer sculpture in front. Though we are modernly built, there are a lot of local cultural touches here.