...SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY NOW IN EFFECT UNTIL 6 PM HST THURSDAY...
* WHAT...East winds 20 to 30 kt.
* WHERE...All surrounding coastal waters.
* WHEN...Until 6 PM HST Thursday.
* IMPACTS...Conditions will be hazardous to small craft.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
Inexperienced mariners, especially those operating smaller
vessels, should avoid navigating in these conditions.
&&
'A'ali'i is a reporter with KITV. He was born and raised on the island of Maui and graduated from the University of Southern California with a bachelor's degree in Journalism.
The Honolulu City Council committee approved the Honolulu Rail project's recovery plan proposal.
HONOLULU (KITV4) -- A Honolulu City Council committee voted Tuesday to approve the Honolulu rail's latest recovery plan, which aims to secure $744 million from the federal government.
To procure the funds, the plan proposes to end the rail's track at the Civic Center Station in Kakaako, a little more than a mile short of the original end point at Ala Moana Center.
However, city and rail leadership said they are dedicated to eventually seeing the project through Ala Moana.
During a meeting with the city council transportation, sustainability and health committee, Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation (HART) board member Anthony Aalto reported the Federal Transit Administration is open to discussing extensions once the tracks to the Civic Center are complete.
"The feeling on the board is that if we can get to Civic Center, we will have the resources to get to Ala Moana and we'll continue to pursue this project as far as UH," Aalto added.
The recovery plan would also defer construction on the Pearl Highlands parking garage due to unstable soil in the area.
The 1,600-stall facility would cost $330 million to build -- and project leaders expect the delay could lead to a 1.7% loss in riders during the rail's first year of operation.
Some testifiers at Tuesday's meeting deemed the garage necessary.
"We believe you build it (the garage), they will use it. Especially commuters from Mililani and Wahiawa," Pearl City neighborhood board member Larry Veray said.
HART CEO Lori Kahikina pointed to Leeward Community College and the Pearl Highlands Center as potential options for a parking garage site.
Kahikina added an alternative could be to extend the rail itself to Mililani and increase bus services.
"I don't know if a parking garage is the right answer," Kahikina said. "If you go to other municipalities, people aren't driving to a parking lot to get on to a train, they're using mass transit to interconnect."
The full council is set to vote on the plan on June 1. Kahikina said if approved, HART will submit the proposal to the FTA later that week.
'A'ali'i is a reporter with KITV. He was born and raised on the island of Maui and graduated from the University of Southern California with a bachelor's degree in Journalism.
