Question: I was at Ala Moana Beach Park after 5:30 p.m. the other day and was going to park in a lifeguard stall because they had all left for the day. A man in civilian board shorts, parked in a lifeguard stall, told me, “Eh, you cannot park here. This only for lifeguards,” as he took his surfboard off his vehicle, obviously going surfing. Why is it that the lifeguard parking stalls at Ala Moana are reserved 24/7, when other beach parks only reserve the lifeguard parking when they are on duty?
Answer: For most of the city’s lifeguard-reserved stalls, “there really is no reason” people cannot park in them when the lifeguards are off duty, acknowledged Ralph Goto, administrator of the Ocean Safety & Lifeguard Services Division.
The problem is that some of the reserved parking signs have hours posted and some don’t, “which is something that needs to be addressed,” he said.
All of the signs along Ala Moana Park Drive, the road that winds through the park, simply say, “No Parking/Life Guard Only/Tow Away Zone.”
However, at the Magic Island lot, we saw three different signs: One identical to those along the roadway; another saying, “Reserved Parking/Lifeguard Only/ 6AM to 6PM,” with a graphic showing a car being towed; and a third saying, “Reserved Parking/Lifeguard Only/Dept of Parks & Recreation/City and County of Honolulu/7 AM to 6 PM/Tow-Away Zone.”
The Lifeguard Division has adopted 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. as the hours for lifeguard parking, said Capt. Paul Merino of South Shore Operations.
Hours of duty — generally 8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. — “are pretty much the same around the island,” he said. “There are exceptions for all districts; some may start early and end later depending on high surf and crowded conditions.”
But after a lifeguard leaves, “the stall becomes first-come, first-served to the public.”
Merino said he will look into adding reserved hours to all the signs, to clear up any misunderstandings.
“We, as city lifeguards, are very fortunate to have designated stalls to park in,” Merino said. “In the Ala Moana Park area, for a lifeguard to have a parking stall behind the tower is a privilege that never should be taken for granted.”
Said Goto, “We will definitely look into this and hopefully standardize the parking (situation)” by posting the hours of restriction, he said.
He thanks you for bringing this to their attention.
Question: What’s the hot-line number to report a nighttime water sprinkler that waters the concrete more than the vegetation? What a waste of water.
Answer: Call the Board of Water Supply’s Water Waste Hotline at 748-5041 if you see a broken water pipe, malfunctioning irrigation sprinkler, faucet left running, etc.
Describe the problem and location, giving an address if possible.
If the water waste is occurring at federal, state and county agencies, you can call the specific agency.
>> City parks and roadways (sprinklers, streets): East Honolulu (Makapuu to Manoa), 373-8013; West Honolulu (Ala Moana to Aiea), 522-7070; Leeward (Pearl City to Wahiawa), 675-7130; and Windward (Waimanalo to Mokuleia), 233-7307
>> State property: Freeways, state roads, 831-6703; state harbors, 587-2070; state buildings, 831-6734; University of Hawaii grounds, 956-7134/956-7922
>> Federal Building grounds: 541-1950; Fort DeRussy grounds, 438-1824; Pearl Harbor Shipyard, 471-0144; Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, 448-4440
For more information, go to goo.gl/0kMTE.
Auwe
To the female driver pulling out of a parking space at Kahala Mall on the second floor just outside Barnes & Noble on Sunday, July 8. It would have taken less than three seconds to let everyone get by, but you insisted on holding up traffic both ways by abruptly pulling out. So much for driving with aloha! — Frustrated in Kahala
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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.
