Bravo to the Star-Advertiser for taking on the monster house issue (“Getting around the house rules,” Star-Advertiser, Nov. 28).
Some years ago the required setback distances from lot lines were changed. The 20-foot front yard was reduced to 10 feet, the backyard reduced from 10 to 5 feet.
A major unreported issue is the complete paving over of front and side yards, sending most rain runoff into streams. resulting in flooding.
We recommend:
>> Return to the former setback requirements.
>> Restrict paving of front and side yards to a total of 20 percent of the lot.
>> Increase parking requirements to one space for every two bedrooms and require that these spaces not be turned into other uses.
>> Prohibit garage height exemptions for houses on hillside lots.
>> For greener neighborhoods, require half the front yard to be landscaped.
>> Increase areas zoned for three-story garden apartments with design options to accommodate extended families.
Jack and Janet Gillmar
Palolo Valley
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Schools must guard against vagrants
Undesirables on campus after school hours.
I’m talking about after school, and through the night, until they get kicked off by custodians or administrators.
The state Department of Education knows about the illegal sleepovers and vandalism done on school grounds, but says it doesn’t have enough money for security. When did you ever hear the DOE had enough money?
Since parents may not know about the unacceptable mess and potential danger that exists on school campuses after school hours, I’m calling for action.
Funds for strategically timed security to keep undesirables from camping out on school property must be made available. With additional support, the police would be more likely to sight individuals illegally hanging out on school grounds.
We are inviting serious trouble, including lawsuits, if we don’t take action.
Matthew Bernstein
Waianae
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Day of reckoning for misogynistic times
All of us men who grew up in the 1950s and 1960s remember when boys were expected to boast among themselves about what is today called “sexual indiscretion.”
Misogyny was pervasive and few females dared to protest, even when physically abused. But progress has been made since then and men must legally behave less like troglodytes.
Now we must examine our own pasts for possible “indiscretions,” and some dread that they may be held accountable by a public accusation. Some of us will get a free ride. But we must all acknowledge and embrace modern society’s boundaries on civilized behavior, the enforcement of which was long overdue. Women will love us for it.
Jeff Bigler
Wailuku
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Proud to see Inouye, AJAs hailed in event
Now living in New Jersey and a past 53-year resident of Hawaii, I was watching the Veterans Day Parade on television from New York City.
As part of the parade, a segment of marchers held large photos of Medal of Honor recipients.
Suddenly, the TV camera focused on a photo of the late U.S. Sen. Daniel Inouye in his World War II Army uniform, held by a marcher. As it passed by the reviewing stand, the TV announcer said that “Senator Inouye from Hawaii” was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor later in life. Again, as the marchers passed in review, the TV camera showed Inouye’s photo, this time with another Japanese-American recipient.
It was a proud moment for me as a former resident of Hawaii and a U.S. Army veteran, knowing Japanese-American veterans and recipients of the Medal of Honor were being honored.
Michael P. Augustin
Matawan, N.J.
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Counties need more leeway to meet costs
It looks like one of the ways the state is going to resolve the humongous public-employee retirement debt is to demand more money from the counties.
Most people expect county taxes and fees will go up, and they probably will. But since the state is putting more of the load on the counties, it should also give the counties more autonomy to handle the load any way they see fit.
If the counties want to legalize and tax gambling, pakalolo, prostitution, offshore banking or whatever, instead of raising taxes and fees on Kimo, they should be able to. It seems only fair to me.
Fred Fogel
Volcano
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Cannabis-gun policy akin to police state
Hawaii has become a police state … quite literally.
The Honolulu Police Department is ordering legal cannabis patients to “voluntarily surrender” their guns. Since when does the police give citizens a choice to comply with an order?
HPD’s rationale is that pot is still illegal under federal law. What about all those gun owners who have used recreational pot for decades? The American public now views marijuana as a controlled substance, like alcohol. Are gun owners who drink alcohol next?
Depriving citizens of their rights, including their Second Amendment rights, without due process is the definition of a police state.
Rhoads Stevens, M.D.
Hawaii Kai
