We were promised a better way
We were promised a better way
I would like to add my voice and show support for the letter written to The Garden Island Letters section on Sunday, April 24, titled “Limit number of visitors.”
I feel betrayed by the Mayor’s Office, Visitors Bureau and any other groups that have a stake in what happens on this island. We were led to believe there would be changes, and that life would not go back to pre-COVID days. All you have to do is take a drive and you can see that not only has there been no positive change, it appears to be worse — AND on all major roads.
Have you been to Po‘ipu Beach Park lately? It looks like a mini-Waikiki. I continually see new housing with no end in sight. I read in The Garden Island about protests happening in the Po‘ipu/Koloa area to stop housing developments. Have you been to Hanalei lately? You sure don’t see local resident families walking around.
Try to find a place to park in Hanapepe and, yes, even in Waimea there is heavy traffic. Is this what we want for our present quality of life and future generations? As an island, it is time to work as a group and let our voices be heard. We were promised a better way, and it has not happened. Our island is sacred and special, and we as stewards of this land need to be doing a lot better job. The over development and over tourism needs to stop now!
Mary Rich, Lihu‘e
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Also Puolo Pt(Salt Pond Pt) and Waimea river mouth have been blocked off. The excuse is illegal camping and dumping rubbish. By blocking off the beaches the Hawaii state government has decided that law abiding citizens have no rights to access. This is illegal discrimination against all Hawaii citizens esp. the Disabled, Keikis, and Kapunas who are now denied access to more quiet areas to fish and enjoy our god given rights to enjoy our land.
Mahalo
I agree with Mary Rich in her letter on Monday, May 2, “We Were Promised A Better Way”. The continued unbridled growth of the tourist industry on this island needs to be reined in and reversed. It’s fine to have an industry that allows a controled amount of people and planes and rental cars on Kauai, but it’s turned into a PLAGUE. I’d like to see TGI begin an investigative series that would show residents how they might go about reclaiming the island.
Bill Parker
Wailua
You are absolutely correct Mary, our Council and Mayor have let us down where tourism is concerned. But elections are coming, we need to elect officials like the officials on Maui who are actually addressing this issue. Use your vote to fix our island!
I drive from Lihue to Poipu several mornings a week. The traffic inbound to Lihue is a solid line as it snakes north on the Kam Hwy. I used to turn left on the Tree Tunnel, but the oncoming vehicles makes it difficult so I continue to Omao and turn there where it is safe to do so. I pray each time I make this trip that there will be no road work with lane closures or, God forbid, an accident as that has in the past turned the 20 minute drive into hours of stop and go.
If the County allows this growth to continue, it must create more roads to accommodate the influx of traffic.
R. Lund
Puhi
I agree that we need to begin to restrict growth and over tourism, but I have no recollection of promises made. I watch the entire council meetings from start to finish for the past 15 years. I also keep informed of all of the public announcements the mayor makes. Please jog my memory as to when these “promises” were made.
With all of the new developments, I have a feeling that those deals were made behind closed doors many years ago. Is it legal and possible for our county govt to restrict the amount of rental cars and tourists on island? How did other counties and states go about this?