Bigger, better plans along Kuhio Avenue

In relative terms, Kuhio Avenue has longed played the seedy stepsister to the more touted, glammed-up Kalakaua Avenue. Grand developments, or redevelopments, rarely seemed to make their magical way a few blocks into Waikiki, inward of the beachfront.

Now, though, it seems the wave of the wand — the recent easing of strict Waikiki zoning rules — may be beginning to work. Pacrep LLC of California recently bought a long-dormant 1.3 acre piece of property at the corner of Kuhio Avenue and Kalaimoku Street, where the old Hula’s Bar & Lei Stand once sat. Where zoning rules once restricted that and other nearby sites to commercial use, new laws adopted in December now allow high-rise residential or commercial use.

Teachers keep moving in Race to the Top

The sound and fury of recent battles over public education can drown out the quiet efforts at progress. So it was refreshing to learn that the Hawaii State Teachers Association has reached a tentative agreement to advance education where it’s needed most — at struggling schools located in Waianae and Nanakuli, and in Keaau, Kau and Pahoa on the Big Island: the so-called "Zones of School Innovation."

The agreement, reported by the Associated Press, would increase the length of the school day by one hour, Monday to Thursday. Such a plan could be a positive step forward in reaching federal Race to the Top goals. Of course, finding common ground on such a sensitive collective-bargaining issue would be a positive step forward, period.