The City Council’s 6th District is one of the oldest on Oahu in terms of history and infrastructure — and it’s showing its age.

Both candidates in the Nov. 2 runoff for outgoing Councilman Rod Tam’s seat say fixing roads is a priority. Tam could not run for re-election because of the two-term limit.

"The streets are just absolutely torn up, and people, as I’m going door-to-door, are saying, ‘What about us?’" said candidate Tulsi Gabbard Tamayo. "(They say) there’s always investment going into these other newer communities, but we’re still forgotten and neglected."

Her opponent, Sesnita Moepono, points out road problems in Kalihi Valley and a problematic S-curve there.

"(But) it will be all of the roads in our area — get them repaved," Moepono said.

Moepono, 60, a self-employed attorney, says her lengthy civic and community experience and knowledge of the district give her an advantage over Tamayo.

Moepono has lived most of her life in Alewa Heights, and spent 11 years on the city Planning Commission and eight years on the Liliha/Alewa Neighborhood Board. She said she organized the Kunawai neighborhood watch and patrol and helped close a drug house.

"I know about our community, its issues and concerns like our roads, parks, sewers and traffic," she said on her website. "I listen. I work with people."

Tamayo received 6,468 votes — nearly one-third of the vote — to Moepono’s 3,957 in the 10-person primary.

Tamayo, 29, a Kukui Plaza resident, said the primary results were due to "a lot of hard work. I mean, that’s what it comes down to, is just reaching out and talking to and listening to as many people as possible."

Tamayo figures she has knocked on more than 10,000 doors. Moepono said she, too, has crisscrossed the community, but didn’t offer an estimate of how many homes she has visited.

Tamayo, who grew up on Pahulu Street in Kalihi Valley, was 21 when she became the youngest legislator ever elected to the state House in 2002. She also was a legislative aide to U.S. Sen. Daniel Akaka, D-Hawaii.

A first lieutenant in the Hawaii Army National Guard, Tamayo saw duty in Iraq and Kuwait on two deployments. She said she’s now in a non-deploying unit, the 103rd Troop Command.

She is partnership coordinator with Paxen Huli Ke Alo, which she said focuses on outreach to at-risk youths and adults.

Tamayo pointed to her "real-world experience in many different areas, combined with the energy and freshness people say they are looking for on the City Council — people say they are looking for fresh ideas."

Moepono said she also wants to focus on reducing crime in Chinatown, and repairing its image.

"Businesses are screaming for help," said Moepono, who grew up going to Chinatown every Saturday.

Tour guides and hotels are telling tourists not to go to Chinatown because it’s unsafe, she said.

Moepono wants to consider using city land on River Street for low-income high-rise housing that would be developed and managed by a nonprofit organization.

Tamayo said business owners in the district have complained about headaches over obtaining city permits to make improvements, and she wants to streamline the permitting, including better informing businesses of the process.

Tamayo is an advocate of looking at fixing up shipping containers or using trailers as shelters for homeless people.

"If we can find a place to put some of these trailers, I think it would be a relatively inexpensive way to get people off the street, provide shelter, and provide a place for them to lay their head at night," she said.

Moepono said residents of the district have told her "they are very concerned about the money situation" for the estimated $5 billion rail project.

"I think rail is a good thing to have as long as you can afford it," she said. "I’ve been talking to a lot of people, especially the elderly, and they’d like to have rail, but they want to make sure that we can afford it."

Moepono added that "we definitely need to look at the budget and prioritize things," including fixing roads and sewers.

Tamayo said a lot of people in Kakaako have concerns about noise with the rail plan.

"Honestly, I think the Council’s responsibility now with where the (rail) project is at is to keep a close eye on the contracts that are given out to make sure the project is completed on time and on budget," she said.