Aloha,
Due to my car's battery problem (needed charging), I arrived approximately at 11:45 a.m. at the February 19th meeting of the 'NK_CDP ‘Annual Community Meeting’. My Battery’s timing was perfect, within two minutes of my arrival, the chairman of the CDP, Bob Martin, explained to the audience that the selected site for the waste facility is, for now, on hold, due to the rejection by the community, and they are trying to revisit this subject by looking for an alternative site someplace else. He figured this very difficult task should be complete by June of this year. He complained about shooting of the messenger is going on, and plenty of not in my backyard, etc.
Speaking of backyard, most of the individuals, if not all, living near the present waste transfer station, are the very ones, desperately trying to get it out of theirs. And, as Peter Klika so aptly stated Nov. 10, 2010 at the WasteStream meeting, these folks will gain in their property value, if they can pull it off, while Ainakea property values will drop by 25%, in his opinion, as a retired land attorney. And, Peter knows what he is talking about. When these folks bought their homes, the transfer station was already there, so they made a conscious decision to move there anyway, whereas, folks in Ainakea had no transfer station near them when they bought their homes. See the difference? Very likely, some folks in Ainakea would not have bought property near a waste processing station. Granted, some folks like the ones pushing for moving the existing station now, would have perhaps bought anyway, and like others, would have gotten the property cheaper because of it.
Bob Martin next invited comments from the audience, and when it was my turn, I asked him, that in light of the overwhelming rejection of the current selected site, near Ainakea, is he now prepared to remove this site permanently from the list? He said, that he simply shelved this site, but is not prepared to remove it from the list. I then asked him, if you are unable to find another suitable site, are you prepared to go back to the current site near Ainakea, despite the fact that in a democratic society the will of the majority should prevail? He gave me a smirk, and said probably not. I told him that he is now talking out of both corners of his mouth. He then asked me from which corner of his mouth I want him to talk. I refrained from answering this silly comment. How about talking straight for once. What is going on here borders on mental cruelty. If they probably would not go back to the original site selected, as stated, why not take it permanently off the list? Two reasons could explain their position. One, they have no intention to abandon the current selection, or they enjoy seeing the community anxious about this issue? By God, what power we have, they must be thinking. It will be interesting to see, if they can match the power of the EPA.
When I asked him, what happened to the good plan they had in 2008, he answered, I will tell you in private, but I am not prepared to state it in public. I just love this kind of reply; it shows the true 'Modus-operandi' of this organization. Heavens forbid, the public should have this kind of information. And, this kind of thinking is the reason why Hawaii enacted the 'Sunshine Law', and our Government put into the books a law, known as the 'Freedom of Information Act'. Needless to say, I am not interested in hearing this hidden information in confidence, for I would surely share it with the public at large. How condescending was that, as far as the wider audience was concerned? What autocratic and arrogant behavior this organization displays, again and again. Finally, Bob Martin invited me to join them, to which I replied, “I will join you under one condition, that you remove the site near Ainakea, permanently.” He declined, and one of his followers, shouted, ”thank you very much!
CDP/WasteStream, I invite you to prove me wrong, but my instinct tells me, we will have a dog and pony show until June, and then guess what? We will be right back to the site near Ainakea homes, it will again be the only suitable site, but only according to some interested parties, who will benefit from the destruction of the quality of life in our community, a community they so very much care for, so they say. But, actions speak louder than words. Do we really all look that stupid? And no, I did not stay for lunch; I came for answers and not lunch. All this double talk dished out was more than a sane person can stomach. Of interest to note is also that the CDP was well protected by two able-bodied security officers. I don't know about them, I felt pretty secure.
Now is the time to write to the EPA, as suggested in my earlier blog; don't wait till June.
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