Q. I have a question about the Waipahu Recreation Center and the pool there. It's been shut down for two years now. There's no water. I used to swim in it every day and I can't understand what's taking so long to fix. Can you find out?

A. City parks director Lester Chang said the Waipahu pool has a history of problems from when it was built in 1965.

The bad news, he said, is that the current problems are such that he "can't hazard a guess" as to how long it will take to fix them and reopen the pool.

Chang said the problems in the 1960s stemmed from the fact that the pool was built in unstable soil, causing the pool to crack and leak. He said the pool was replaced in 1992-93 and that soil conditions for the pool were addressed, but the new problems developed from a lack of physical support for the surrounding structures and walkway.

The good news is his department got $1.4 million included in the current budget to fix it, and that the city last month issued a contract to investigate the problem, he said.

Chang said the latest problems caused the pool to leak thousands of gallons a day. They tracked the problem to the filter system and not the pool itself after the walkways around the gym and pool sank.

"The pool itself is not shifted, to the best we know," he said, "But you can't run the pool without the pump-filter system."

He said city officials first thought the problem was the pump and that they could fix it themselves, but now realize it's more complicated. "It's a real complex problem. That's why it's taking so long," he said.

Q. I heard that in a few days all cell phone numbers are being released to telemarketing companies and that you will be charged for those calls. Why is this happening?

A. I received e-mails saying this a few times — including one last month. The Federal Trade Commission says this rumor, while persistent, is not true. There is no deadline, and the Federal Communications Commission bans telemarketers from using automated dialers on cell-phone numbers.

You can go to the registry run by the FTC to request your number be removed from lists of telemarketers by going to www.donotcall.gov or by calling (888) 382-1222 and following the instructions. The service limits most telemarketer calls, those it doesn't eliminate those from companies you do business with, political organizations, charities and telephone surveyors.

Reach Bureaucracy Buster at:

Bureaucracy Buster
The Honolulu Advertiser
605 Kapi'olani Blvd.
Honolulu, HI 96813