Young people must take virus seriously

I am a senior, fully vaccinated and boosted individual who has been lucky enough to avoid infection throughout this COVID-19 pandemic. I have taken many precautions, including wearing a mask consistently if I am in risky situations such as shopping for essentials. Although I have remained safe from contracting this dangerous virus, I can’t help but be concerned at how many young people, mostly unvaccinated, are showing up at emergency rooms with serious life-threatening symptoms.

On behalf of all of us who have lived long and happy lives, I plead for the young to take every step available to avoid being hospitalized and possibly dying from this nasty virus.

It breaks my heart to watch the young showing up in hospitals and losing their lives, or having long-term symptoms.

Please, please, please get triple-vaccinated as soon as you can. You have so much life ahead of you. Do not let COVID-19 take it from you.

Craig Roberts

Kalama Valley

Vacation rentals burden neighbors

I suspect that the author of “Bill 41 would punish Oahu property owners” (Star-Advertiser, Letters, Jan. 27), has a dog in the fight.

I have two questions for anyone that is against this bill. Are you one of the owners an illegal short-term rental for numerous years, and were you fined at any time during those years?

Those who can answer yes to either of these questions are the reason for Bill 41. Those owners of illegal rentals caused an undue burden on their law-abiding neighbors out of desire for monetary gain. My guess is that they don’t realize they are the ones who caused owning a home to be even more unattainable to most locals, raised our property taxes higher than they would have been otherwise, and made Bill 41 necessary.

I am glad something finally is being done to restrict short-term rentals to areas that will not be such a burden on our neighbors. My neighborhood is not a resort area and tourists don’t belong in it or any other area zoned as residential.

Laura Warren

Wahiawa

Navy should drop patronizing attitude

Tuesday’s headline, “Navy to withhold full Red Hill report” (Star-Advertiser, Jan. 25), is alarming at this stage of the situation. The Navy is using the rationale of military readiness for maintaining the aging facility that threatens to affect the lives of all here on Oahu. But what will military readiness look like if the Navy continues to endanger, alienate and antagonize all sectors of the population, including its own? It won’t take much to demonize the military and all who do business with them. Antagonistic landlords, agencies, neighbors and employees are not conducive to “military readiness.”

The Navy must abandon the patronizing style, arrogance and secrecy, and start working openly to tackle these serious issues, averting the environmental damage and social fallout. That would allow the Navy to build some trust and credibility, rather than eroding it.

M. Puakea Nogelmeier

Kalihi

City being flexible with ARPA funds

Regarding your editorial, “Apply ARPA funds to near-term needs” (Star-Advertiser, Our View, Jan. 20), you hit the nail on the head. The Blangiardi administration is working with the City Council to ensure the city’s federal relief funds (FRF) are used to meet the needs of our residents and communities and transform how government serves the people.

To date, the city has procured/approved:

>> $15 million for COVID-19 tests kits;

>>$3.2 million for isolation quarantine;

>> $100,000 for Honolulu Fire Department community testing;

>> $115,000 for mobile boosting;

>> $6.4 million for Crisis Outreach Response and Engagement (CORE) for nonviolent homeless emergency calls.

We are working on programs to offset critical economic losses to our residents and businesses, provide workforce training and support agriculture and food distribution programs. There is good work to be done using FRF funds in a flexible way to meet the evolving and critical needs of our communities. That is the city’s top priority.

Michael D. Formby

Managing director, City and County of Honolulu

Affordable housing shouldn’t be a ghetto

I was appalled when I saw the “New visions for Halawa site” graphic (Star-Advertiser, Jan. 27). It looks like a ghetto. Where are the schools, the parks, the playgrounds? It looks like a plan to warehouse people of lower income far away from everyone else, so we can ignore their existence.

Somehow we need to figure out a way so that lower-income housing is dispersed widely. All children need the opportunity to go to well-supported schools no matter what the income of their parents. They need safe places to play and enjoy nature (as do we all). This “vision” stacks people like firewood, an invitation to increase discord and crime.

I am no expert. I don’t know how to make this happen. I do believe we can do better and that it is our responsibility to do so.

Sherryl Royce

Hawaii Kai

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