Question: I am an employee of a small business in the Mapunapuna business area. I was recently informed by a friend who works for Hawaiian Telcom at Kikowaena Place in Mapunapuna that they are selling a portion of their property, which includes an employee parking lot. I work for a company that has a few parking stalls for customers only. I have to arrive one to 11⁄2 hours before work to find parking. The Hawaiian Telcom employee said there are at least 150-plus cars in their lot that, if it is sold, will be looking for parking in the same area as myself and many others. Is there any city ordinance that would help prevent a big business from doing this to us?
Answer: There’s no law requiring companies, big or small, to provide employee parking.
But you don’t have to worry about Hawaiian Telcom employees battling you for a parking space.
A 3.38-acre portion of Hawaiian Telcom’s 10-acre base yard at 1021 Kikowaena Place is for sale, confirmed spokeswoman Ann Nishida Fry.
But even if it’s sold, employees can continue to park on company premises and will not need to seek outside or street parking, she said.
“It’s a good business practice to regularly review assets and convert any unneeded excess,” Nishida Fry said, explaining why the company was selling part of its property.
After determining that existing operations could be conducted on a smaller portion of the Mapunapuna property, the decision was made to sell 3.38 acres to “provide some revenue to support our strategic initiatives,” she said.
Question: Can you please help clarify the rules of the road at the Keeaumoku Street and Heulu Street intersection in Makiki before someone gets seriously injured? There is a small traffic rotary there with four “Yield” signs. But some drivers on Keeaumoku think they have a superior right of way as they barrel through the intersection without slowing down or stopping, treating Heulu drivers as if they have a stop sign. Hopefully, your explanation will help eliminate a very dangerous situation.
Answer: We addressed similar concerns back in 2004, when “roundabouts” were relatively new traffic “calming” devices in the state meant to slow motorists down.
For those still uncertain or confused about traversing those circular traffic islands, here are the basic rules of the road:
>> Travel in a roundabout is only in a counterclockwise direction.
>> Approaching motorists should yield to cars already in the roundabout.
>> Once in a roundabout, don’t stop unless necessary.
>> Large vehicles are allowed to go over the apron of the circular “splitter island” when passing through a roundabout.
>> Motorists should yield to pedestrians in crosswalks, which are set one car length back from the entry points into the roundabouts, before entering or exiting.
Mahalo
To a kind stranger who showed us the true spirit of aloha. My husband was in the checkout line at Walmart, trying to pay a $300 bill with his new credit card. But the card wouldn’t go through. So he ran to an ATM to do a quick activation. He came back, but still no success. All his purchases were bagged and ready to go, but he only had $100 cash. He felt like how anybody would have felt — ashamed and sorry that he was holding up the line. But the unthinkable happened. A kind wahine behind him loaned him the $200 he needed. She said he looked like he could be trusted. She saw the box of diapers in his cart and assumed he was a family man. She gave my husband her address card and said to mail her a check in return. I was shocked that someone would loan a complete stranger $200. I was more than happy to mail her a check and grateful that there are people out there with such an aloha spirit.
— Kalama Ohana
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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.
