Blog

Monday, December 10, 2007

Lani Kailua Outdoor Circle Tree Planting

On a recent Saturday morning a crowd gathered at Aikahi Triangle Park in Kailua to bless the 21 Nara and Monkey pod trees planted in the median of Mokapu Boulevard. The event also was a celebration of the partnership between the Lani-Kailua Outdoor Circle and the City Department of Parks and Recreation, Division of Urban Forestry.

Mayor Mufi Hannemann, City Council Chair Barbara Marshall, Parks Director Lester Chang and LKOC President, Sharon Geary, as well as most of the LKOC Board members were in attendance. The 21 trees were supplied by the City and LKOC Board paid the planting costs of more than $15,000. The trees were planted to replace the dead Wiliwili trees which had fallen prey to the state-wide blight.

Beach Walks with Rox #529 – Outdoor Circle Tree Blessing

Monday, December 03, 2007

Flyers on Utility Poles Degrade Communities

Once again greedy concert promoters have decided that our communities are a good place for them to illegally advertise their events. Last week hundreds of ugly yellow flyers were posted on utility poles in various places across O‘ahu, most notably on the beautiful Windward side.

From Makapu‘u Lookout to the Waimanalo business district dozens of utility poles were wallpapered with flyers creating an unforgivable eyesore along one of the most scenic roadways on the planet. The flyers were strategically concentrated in the areas where people tend to congregate—near pubic parks, in front of schools, close to commercial businesses and in residential neighborhoods. The same flyers also have been posted on numerous utility poles elsewhere on the island as well.

The event advertised on the posters is a reggae concert scheduled for Kualoa Ranch. But of course Kualoa denied any knowledge of the dastardly deed, as did the concert’s promoter. That’s par for the course. The utility poles on all of our islands frequently become the target of event promoters who obviously believe that their desire to make money supersedes the peoples’ right to live and play in an environment free of illegal advertising. And make no mistake about it, posting any type of sign on a utility pole, whether a concert flyer or garage sale notice, is not only a civil violation that can result in fines, but also a criminal act for which violators can be sentenced to community service and even time in jail.

In this instance The Outdoor Circle would like to extend a huge mahalo to the State Department of Transportation for its extremely quick action in dispatching a highway crew to remove the flyers along Kalanianaole Highway in the Waimanalo area. The removal work obviously was done at taxpayer expense. Even so, hundreds of flyers for the Kualoa event remain on utility poles elsewhere on O‘ahu and we encourage anyone who finds this illegal activity offensive to call Kualoa Ranch and register a complaint. Kualoa might not be responsible for posting the flyers, but it and other event venues should communicate a clear message in their contracts with promoters that illegally advertising their events will result in stiff financial penalties and result in losing their ability to stage future events. That’s the type of action that might make event promoters obey the law and prevent the unconscionable littering of our communities with illegal advertising.

In the meantime, if you see illegal flyers on utility poles anyplace on O‘ahu, please call The Outdoor Circle.