NEIGHBOR ISLANDS
Palace Theater finally getting its roof restored
The historic Palace Theater in Hilo is getting a new roof at a cost of $116,000.
The Hawaii Tribune-Herald reports the project is the largest capital undertaking so far in the restoration of the 87-year-old landmark.
Cheryl Moore, president of Friends of the Palace Theater, identified the roof as a priority when she joined the board in 2002.
"Water was leaking everywhere," she recalled.
The building is on both the state and federal registers of historic places, which meant high work standards and costs.
The Edmund C. Olson Trust in Pahala offered a $30,000 matching grant that got the fundraising under way, and dozens of fundraisers followed to match it.
"We’re replacing, not building, ancient corrugated metal, gutters and downspouts," said Moore. The attic will also get new insulation and vents.
"What a flood of memories," said Brian Peterson of Yama’s Roofing, a major donor, during a recent visit. "The first movie I saw there was ‘Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.’ I got my first kiss up in the balcony, way up."
Telephone links remote residents to Maui Council
Residents of Hana, Lanai and Molokai can now testify before the Maui County Council and its committees by telephone from their Council district offices.
Maui County residents voted Nov. 6 in favor of an initiative that makes it easier for residents of remote communities to testify during Council meetings held in Wailuku. The first such testimony took place Thursday before the Council’s economic development committee, the Molokai Dispatch reports.
