More work around the Pali Highway

Not that folks making the Nuuanu-Kailua transit aren’t relieved that the Pali Highway reopened. Of course they are. As long as they stay on the highway itself, it’s smooth going.

However, the Pali resurfacing project, complicated by the need for upgrades following the rockfall last spring, isn’t the full story. It’s paired with the Dowsett Highlands Relief Sewer Project, currently tearing up Dowsett and Nuuanu avenues, as well as the townside stretch of the Pali. This, too, shall pass — they promise.

Navy moves toward new dry dock

The Navy is pledging to install the first new dry dock at Pearl Harbor since World War II. The move comes amid efforts to modernize forces and speed maintenance times in response largely to military advances made by China and Russia. U.S. Sen. Mazie Hirono has pegged the preliminary cost estimate at between $1.5 billion and $2 billion.

Hawaii’s congressional delegation also should redouble focus on securing a commitment for another important investment in Navy modernization: an acceptable fix for the nearby Red Hill Bulk Fuel Facility, either by replacing or relocating the aging World War II-era tanks, perched just 100 feet above Oahu’s primary drinking water aquifer.