Question: What agency has control over naming new streets in Hawaii? Are there specific criteria it uses? Also, is there a way to find the Hawaiian translation of a particular street?
Answer: Each county has an agency that oversees the naming of streets under its jurisdiction. On Oahu the Department of Planning and Permitting handles that task.
Sections 22-8.1 to 22-8.5 of the Revised Ordinances of Honolulu lay out the street-naming requirements and procedures, although DPP’s predecessor, the Department of Land Utilization, is still said to be the one responsible for approving the names.
Among the key criteria: Names must be a Hawaiian name, word or phrase; must not duplicate existing names; and must have "appropriate meanings."
More specifically, the Hawaiian name, word or phrase has to be appropriate to the historic, cultural, scenic and topographical features of the area, and it cannot exceed the space limitations of a standard street sign, which normally is 18 spaces.
Until the ordinance was changed to require Hawaiian street names, non-Hawaiian names could be used if there was some historic tie. For example, Whitmore Avenue in Wahiawa was named after John Lawler Whitmore, the first manager of Dole Pineapple Co., from 1903 to 1933.
There also are provisions for changing an existing street name, which require giving a reason for the change; notifying all affected property owners and tenants, including the Fire and Police departments, and post office; and getting a majority of those affected to agree to the change.
Regarding translations, we’re told the street names staff relies on such reference materials as Mary Kawena Pukui’s and Samuel Elbert’s Hawaiian-English Dictionary; Pukui’s "Place Names of Hawaii"; and Rich Budnick’s "Hawaiian Street Names." You can also find many translations on the Internet.
Street Versus Road
Beyond the actual name, not every road is a "street," and an "avenue" has to be more than a street. The nomenclature for street designations in the city ordinance gives these definitions:
» Road: A collector roadway in rural areas, generally without full improvements, such as curbs and sidewalks. (Collector roads carry low/moderate levels of traffic to higher-capacity (arterial) roads.)
» Street: A fully improved through roadway serving local or minor collector traffic.
» Avenue: A fully improved through roadway serving local or minor collector traffic, landscaped and planted with trees.
» Circle: A roadway having a circular form, with only one access point to the adjoining street.
» Loop: A roadway having two access points off the same roadway.
» Place: A cul-de-sac.
» Way: A cul-de-sac that is off another cul-de-sac.
» Court: A short roadway partially or wholly enclosed by buildings.
» Mall: Used exclusively or primarily for pedestrians, where vehicular traffic is restricted wholly or in part.
» Lane: A narrow and short roadway without curbs or sidewalks.
» Parkway: A major collector roadway, usually containing a medial strip with landscaped setback parklike areas on each side of the right-of-way, generally heavily planted with trees.
» Boulevard: A major collector with or without a medial strip, generally shorter than a highway, usually serving through traffic on a continuous route.
» Drive: A long, winding collector roadway, usually through a valley, mountain area or plateau, with scenic qualities.
» Freeway: A divided arterial roadway for through traffic with full control of access and grade separations at intersections.
» Highway: A roadway generally serving through traffic on a continuous route providing the primary access between communities.
Both freeways and highways are required to be named after Hawaiian royalty "whenever practicable."
Mahalo
To a kind stranger. I stopped in the Times Coffee Shop at Koolau Shopping Center for breakfast one Saturday in September. When I asked the waitress for my bill, she said someone had paid for my meal. This had never happened to me before, and it made me feel good all day. Whoever is responsible for this random act of kindness, I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart. — Cyndy
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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.
