TRIBUTE

HIS SPIRIT WILL LIVE ON IN ALL WHO KNEW LAKE

It was heart wrenching to hear about John Lake's death on May 14. I was John's colleague at Chaminade (he taught Hawaiian and served as kumu-in-residence at the university after his retirement from Saint Louis).

My office at Kieffer Hall was right across from John's, so we frequently met and talked. John's gracious presence always struck me: he radiated total aloha.

He was a man of deep faith. I felt always awe whenever we met.

John was also so helpful to me when I taught Chaminade's first Pacific island literature course; he guest lectured on Hawaiian mythology. His knowledge was absolutely amazing - and his enthusiasm for the culture he loved so intense.

Even before I ever met John, I sensed his special spirit and kindness and sensitivity in his lovely daughter Naomi, whom I taught some years ago (she was an English major at Chaminade).

Rest in peace, John. Your special gracious spirit will live on in all who knew you.

WORLD WAR II

SHIPYARD WORKERS ALSO DESERVE A MEMORIAL

A friend sent me your special section on Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard's centennial week.

My father, James Marciel Sr., worked at Pearl for more than 42 years. I am still finding mementos from his time there during World War II.

One of his notes in his draftsman's printing told of the time his shop repaired the Arizona's bow the week before Dec. 7, 1941.

Sometime in December of that year, he writes, "the Navy apparently still maneuvering in the area had two battleships the USS Arizona and the USS Pennsylvania run into each other." His job was to visit the Arizona where he "...noted the extent of the damage...prepared the specifications and cost estimates for the individual shops..." After completion of the repair, "... the ship was being removed from drydock on Dec. 5, 1941, the engineering officer called and asked if I would like to go for a ride. Of course I did. Later I was boated back to the shipyard on the ship's gig....the Arizona proceeded to tie up at mooring where she was to die two days later."

These words still bring tears to my eyes. My dad never visited the Arizona or Missouri memorials, though I asked him often over the years. Whenever I or my kids go to the Arizona Memorial we wonder where is the memorial to those shipyard workers?

NO. 1 RANKING

REPORT CONFIRMS CITY GOING IN RIGHT DIRECTION

The new Brookings Institution report that ranked Honolulu No. 1 out of 100 U.S. cities for our low carbon emissions was great news, but we will not be content to rest on our laurels.

We're moving forward aggressively on many important initiatives to further protect our environment and enhance our quality of life.

Our rail transit project is exactly what's needed to provide key improvements cited by the study to reduce pollution: Promote more transportation choices and transit-oriented development.

The study found that cities with rail mass transit systems and densely populated urban cores have far smaller "carbon footprints" per capita than sprawling metropolitan areas dependent on private vehicles. Our rail system will give thousands of commuters and visitors an alternative to private vehicles and clogged freeways, while providing important opportunities for new housing, commercial space and public facilities along the rail line.

Our 21st Century Ahupua'a Plan closely examined other environmentally friendly policies, and they are now reaching fruition. We're continually expanding curbside residential recycling, replacing buses and police cars with efficient hybrid vehicles, increasing the capacity of the H-Power garbage-to-energy plant, operating ferries from Kalaeloa to Aloha Tower and adding bicycle lanes to our roadways.

A few will always nit-pick when good news is announced, but we're confident that the Brookings report provided an honest assessment of Honolulu's ranking and made it clear that we are moving in the right direction with rail transit and other important initiatives. Our goal remains to leave Honolulu better than we found it.

DEMOCRATIC PARTY

LEADERS SHOULD HAVE SUPPORTED A CONCON

While many Democrats flocked to Sen. Barack Obama's call to "challenge the status quo and get results," as stated on his campaign Web site, the Hawai'i Democratic Party is sending a different message to its members.

On May 24, the party elected Obama supporters to fill most of the party's official and superdelegate positions and then rejected a resolution to support a Constitutional Convention. They instead voted in favor of a resolution to educate residents on the "risks" involved in a ConCon.

But, a ConCon is also about challenging the status quo. The benefits of voter input in the direction of our government far outweigh any risks involved.

The Democratic Party had record attendance at the convention because so many Hawai'i residents support Obama's call for change in America.

A ConCon would give the people of Hawai'i the opportunity for change here at home, too. We can propose amendments to our State Constitution and vote to approve these changes. The opportunity for a ConCon in Hawai'i is consistent with Obama's message and should have been supported by Democrat Party leaders.

BIRTHDAY PARTY PITCH

RESTAURANT AD AN INSULT TO AMERICAN VETERANS

An insult beyond belief to America's and the free world's victory over the forces of communism arrived today in my mailbox.

I'm sure the creator of the large postcard ad for the Top of Waikiki restaurant's pitch to attract birthday parties was meant to be cute, but whoever thought this thing up needs a down-and-dirty lesson on the 80-year brutal history of the communists. It continues to fester in Cuba and North Korea.

The card depicts a Communist Party-style poster, showing a silhouetted couple, with the title "JOIN THE PARTY," in which the "N" in JOIN and "R" in PARTY are printed backwards, suggesting it was written using a Russian alphabet. It's also on the restaurant's Web site.

I don't think American veterans of the Korean and Vietnam wars or the many American citizens and immigrants who fled communist tyranny around the world will think it's very cute.

And it might just be a bit counter-productive to the intent of the ad, which I assume is to create new business.

ENERGY COSTS

SCHOOLS NEED HEALTHY LEARNING ENVIRONMENT

God bless caring people such as Gloria Gorter (Letter, May 27) and others for their efforts to improve the learning environment at Aliamanu Middle School with air conditioners for the classrooms.

However, after all of their effort they are now informed by the principal that the Department of Education will charge the school for "excess use of electricity...installed on our own."

Huh? Why should parents and a school be encouraged to improve and get involved, use their heads, hearts and hard-earned money on behalf of their kids and then be zapped with nonsensical, insulting bureaucracy?

During the approval process for installation was this not clarified? Does every school that now has any kind of air conditioning get its budget penalized while state employees sit comfortably in their air-conditioned offices?

Schools beg for positive, healthy learning environments to encourage the very best for and from our keiki.

I suggest that DOE members and legislators spend all day in a non-air-conditioned office, or better yet a classroom, to understand how imbalanced and wrong this is.

It is clear to me that priorities need to be changed.

TRANSIT STATION AREAS

DEVELOPMENTS HAVE HAD A DUBIOUS HISTORY

Mayor Mufi Hanneman's land-use plans for Waipahu and other transit-oriented developments surrounding rail stations will designate private lands as "blighted areas." Through eminent domain proceedings, the city will condemn private properties earned by hard work and sacrifice to then be turned over to private developers. Eminent domain for redevelopments is a major controversy in courts nationwide.

Transit-oriented developments have a dubious history. Expectations of increased property values in TODs are often disappointing.

As Robert Cervero's UC-Berkeley team reported to the Transportation Research Board: "While the concepts of TOD and TJD enjoy broad appeal, in truth, the gulf between theory and practice remains large. To date, America's track record at implementing successful TODs has not been impressive."

For over a decade, Portland's MAX stopped at a desolate Cascade Station amid vast empty acres. By 2007, city planners caved in to a big-box lease by Ikea and eliminated zoning restrictions on parking.

TODs cater to transient urban professionals, empty-nesters, second-home and foreign buyers of pricey units. The absence of families with children in Portland's TODs is readily apparent. Lagging occupancy in the gentrified TOD Pearl district prompted lavish $100,000 property tax exemptions per unit: $10,000 per year for 10 years. Three different developers went bankrupt by investing in The Round, another Portland TOD.

The public policy implications of urban renewal are explained by Harvard professor Edward Glaeser; "Destroying lower quality, older homes means destroying affordable housing for the less fortunate....The impact of anti-poverty spending may be to increase, rather than decrease urban poverty."