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Oahu homeless population falls 1%
Oahu saw only a 1% drop in homelessness in January — not the 4% decline reported in February, according to data released Wednesday. Read more
TO OUR READERS
The Honolulu Star-Advertiser and Hawaii News Now are joining forces to report on the ever-worsening homelessness crisis.
While both news organizations will continue to report daily stories on homelessness, we will work together on bigger projects that delve into all aspects of the issue. To reach the widest possible audience for these important projects on this crisis, you will see reports in print, online and on broadcasts.
For example, on this page of the Star-Advertiser and in Hawaii News Now broadcasts on Monday, you will find stories on homeless encampments you might not be aware of and learn details about some of them.
Through stories such as these, we hope to raise awareness among the public — and public officials — about the gravity of the situation and the need to take action to help the homeless and, by doing so, help our community.
Both newsrooms hope you, as readers and viewers, will help with this project by offering comments, observations and suggestions online and in letters to the editor. While a collaboration between two competing newsrooms is unusual, Hawaii’s homelessness crisis requires an unusual approach.
Oahu saw only a 1% drop in homelessness in January — not the 4% decline reported in February, according to data released Wednesday. Read more
The updated Oahu numbers mean that Hawaii saw an overall 1 percent decline in homelessness in January. Read more
In the summer of 2015, one of America’s largest homeless encampments sprung up in plain site around Kakaako Waterfront Park where Honolulu police and state sheriff’s deputies found themselves chasing more than 300 homeless people between city streets, state parks and privately owned parcels of land. Read more
Leman Key said she’s been homeless for 23 years, but could not remember her age. Read more
Chinatown business owners and married couple Oren Schlieman and Fran Butera symbolize the frustration of Chinatown merchants. Read more
May is Mental Health Month, a time to raise awareness around mental health issues. For me personally, that means advocating for and supporting the 7,000 homeless individuals living in Hawaii, many of whom suffer from mental illness. Read more
Morning, noon and night in Chinatown they yell at the sky, mutter obscenities, and sleep in doorways where they sometimes reek of urine — or worse. Read more
As former Waikiki hotel manager Daniel Hoover rode the bus past the bench he used to sleep on at the crossroads of Kalakaua and Kuhio avenues, he had a surreal moment. Read more
While homelessness overall was down on the neighbor islands, a snapshot from January shows a wide range for each county compared with the data collected in 2018 — from a wild 51% increase on Kauai to a 21% drop on Hawaii island to a 1% decrease on Maui. Read more
Despite the perception that the issue of homelessness can never be solved, we actually know what works: permanent supportive housing, or in other words, housing with wrap-around professional support services that include mental health and addiction programs. Read more
Hawaii currently has the highest per capita rate of homelessness in the nation. Read more
Under the threat of state Health Department fines of up to $1,000 per violation, a Kaimuki couple who used to provide meals and hot showers to homeless people around Kakaako Waterfront Park is backing down and looking for a different spot. Read more
Honolulu Police Department Chief Susan Ballard pledged to improve public safety by making Waikiki “uncomfortable” for homeless people. Read more
A Kaimuki couple with a new city contract to provide mobile hot showers for Oahu’s homeless are defying the city by supporting the Kakaako homeless. Read more
Honolulu Councilwoman Kymberly Pine has proposed that each of the nine Council members receive $2.3 million — or $21 million overall — to use in efforts to reduce homelessness. Read more
A poll commissioned by HawaiiKidsCAN found strong support for boosting spending on public education, but homelessness ranked as the top voter priority by far. Read more
Honolulu police officers Thursday morning rolled into the Walgreens parking lot on Young Street and ordered three homeless people to leave the private property — part of an ongoing effort to remove a particularly stubborn group of five to 10 chronically homeless people from the area. Read more
After living in a van with his daughter — and a stint in the 270-person homeless encampment next to the Waianae Small Boat Harbor — Falaniko “Niko” Pesamino teared up Tuesday at the thought of the stability he’s found in his 1-year-old, one-bedroom home built by the city for homeless families. Read more
The Honolulu Police Department is asking for funding of 10 reactivated officer positions for a community outreach unit aimed at coordinating its outreach and enforcement efforts with social service providers to better assist the homeless. Read more
City officials hope to fill four more positions to enforce the city’s stored property and sidewalk nuisance ordinances — or what Mayor Kirk Caldwell calls “some of the dirtiest work in the City and County of Honolulu” cleaning up homeless encampments. Read more
Some 45 percent of Hawaii voters live in homes where someone is considering moving away — or has already left the islands — typically because of the cost of living, according to a new poll of voters conducted for Pacific Resource Partnership. Read more