Government

Molokai Flood Zone Changes Presented on Monday

Friday, September 5th, 2014

County of Maui News Release

Important information on the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA’s) new digital flood insurance rate maps (DFIRMs) will be highlighted at public meetings being held on Molokai Monday, Sept. 8. The meeting is from 1 to 5 p.m. at the Dept. of Hawaiian Homelands, with a presentation at 3 p.m.

For Molokai, the revised DFIRMs reflect the integration of the 2008 statewide hurricane study, which affects properties on the south shore of Molokai, as well as the decertification of the Kaunakakai levee system.

Personnel from FEMA, the County of Maui and the State Department of Land and Natural Resources (DLNR) will provide a short presentation and take questions on the new flood maps and insurance ramifications.…

Veterans Corner

Friday, August 29th, 2014

Community Contributed

By Jesse Church

Aloha my fellow veterans and residents of Molokai, old Jesse here with all the veterans news and upcoming events. The 1st Battalion, 9th Marines, is nicknamed “The Walking Dead.” Do you know why? First activated during WW II, the infantry battalion earned its macabre nickname during the Vietnam War. In a 1966 speech former Vietnamese Prime Minister Ho Chi Minh referred to the Marines as “walking dead,” dead but not buried. The unit sustained the highest casualty rate in Marine history during the Vietnam era, according to the battalion’s webpage on Marines. Military deployed for a combat tour lasting 47 months and seven days, another record.…

New Format for Community Budget Meetings

Wednesday, August 27th, 2014

Maui County Budget Office News Release

Mayor Alan Arakawa and his administration will host a series of community meetings in September and October to receive comments and suggestions from the public regarding the proposed budget for the Fiscal Year 2015-2016. Citizens with an interest in the county budget are encouraged to attend and offer input, either as individuals or on behalf of an organization. Both written and verbal comments will be accepted.

The Molokai meeting will be held on Thursday, Sept. 25, at the Home Pumehana Center at 3 p.m.

As a new feature this year to the Mayor’s annual community budget meetings, tables will be set up to allow directors and staff from each county department to meet with members of the public, hear budget-related needs, listen to concerns and answer questions about various county-related issues.…

After the Primary

Wednesday, August 20th, 2014

Community Contributed

By Barbara Haliniak

On May 21, I filed my campaign nomination papers for State House District 13 which gave me only 80 days to actively campaign before the Aug. 9 Primary Election.  Therefore, it was a crunch campaign for my run against an eight-year incumbent.  And since I chose not to solicit campaign contributions for this election, the money contributed was from friends, family and my own funds, which resulted in limited trips to Maui including a trip to Hana, suppressed any trips specifically for sign waving activities on Hana Highway and only one trip to Lanai.  Although it was a low budget short campaign, I felt I ran a good campaign with a passionate heart to bring positive outcomes for District 13 communities (Molokai, Lanai, Hana, Haiku, Paia and East Maui).…

Primary Election Results

Thursday, August 14th, 2014

Primary Election Results

Hawaii voters took to the polls Saturday on the heels of the first hurricane to hit the island chain in 22 years. Despite the storm, the state’s Primary Election continued. The election went on to oust the incumbent governor and leave a race between two Senate candidates too close to call.

The winners from each political party in the primary election will go on to appear on the General Election ballot in November.  In the primary, voters could only select candidates within their chosen parties.  In the general election, they may vote for party or nonpartisan candidates.

Local Turnout

On Molokai, 4,100 people registered to vote this year.…

Veterans Corner

Wednesday, August 13th, 2014

Community Contributed

By Jesse Church

Aloha my fellow veterans and residents of Molokai, old Jesse here with all the veterans news and upcoming events. Why are the five gallon containers used to transport fuel and water called jerry cans The cans were invented by the German military during the 1930s. In the early years of WWII, the British military began using captured German cans because they were superior to the flimsy British fuel containers. By then, the slang term for the Germans among Allied troops was “jerry.” The nickname came from the chamber put that looked like a German helmet, or a jerry in British slang.…

Molokai Voters’ Election Guide

Wednesday, August 6th, 2014

Molokai Voters’ Election Guide

What to know before heading to the polls.

Primary Election day is quickly approaching. Your vote is your voice and one of the most powerful forces to shape the future by electing a representative government who will make decisions which affect you, your family and your community. On Saturday, Aug. 9, cast your vote for the candidate you think best represents your vision for the future.

The options can be confusing, though, and seeing the ballot for the first time at the polls can be overwhelming if you’re not prepared. So to help you get ready for this year’s primary election, the Dispatch has compiled a list of the candidates that will appear on Molokai ballots.…

Veterans Corner

Wednesday, July 23rd, 2014

Community Contributed

By Jesse Church

Aloha my fellow veterans and residents of Molokai, old Jesse here with all the veterans news and upcoming events.

The MV-22 Osprey shares its name with a bird of prey. So why is Osprey such an appropriate name? One of North America’s largest birds of prey, the osprey is a magnificent fish eating hawk, according to the National Audubon Society. Like the Marine Corps tiltrotor aircraft, the osprey is often at sea. And like Marines, its presence has grown all over the world, near coastlines and other bodies of water. The term osprey derives from the Latin word ossifragus, meaning bone breaker.…

On the Campaign Trail

Thursday, July 17th, 2014

Community Contributed

By Barbara Haliniak

As a registered candidate for the State House in the 2014 Primary Elections, I received an invitation from the Honolulu Star-Advertiser to participate in the Voter’s Guide that will be published in print and on-line.

If the Star-Advertiser uses the same criterion as in the 2012 elections, we were asked several questions, but only two were published.  So to give you voters an opportunity to review the Star-Advertiser’s key issue questions that may not appear in the publication, I will provide you the five questions that were asked and my responses which were limited to 50 words each.…

Veterans Corner

Wednesday, July 16th, 2014

Community Contributed

By Jesse Church

Aloha my fellow veterans and residents of Molokai, old Jesse here with all the veterans news and upcoming events. Kick the bucket, bite the dust, pushing up daisies. All creative ways to say, he or she is no longer with us, and of course the military way to highlight death is, he bought the farm. Why? Around WWII, pilots began to say that when a jet crashed on a farm, the farmer usually sued the government for damages done to his farm by the crash. The amount demanded was either more than or equal to the mortgage, around $10,000 at the time, buying the farm outright.…