Commentary from Senator Sakamoto
January 23, 2007
15th District Residents Speak Out On Mass Transit Plan
On January 9, the Honolulu Star-Bulletin printed Councilman Romy Cachola's article, "Transit plan should include Salt Lake segment." He noted the district's positive response to Senator Sakamoto's mail out: "The Salt Lake community is solidly behind the proposed use of Salt Lake Boulevard. After Mayor Mufi Hanneman encouraged Salt Lake residents to speak out on this matter, I received 122 responses to letters sent by my colleague state Sen. Norman Sakamoto. Of that amount, 117 favored the Salt Lake alignment, three preferred the airport, one opposed fixed guideway and one was left blank. If this is not a strong indication of the community's sentiments, then I don't know what is."
Mahalo to all those who responded to my letters! You did a great job in making your voice heard.
The job is not done yet. We still need to keep speaking out. While the City Council did authorize the mass transit system, they left it to the city administration to decide where the transit system is to be built.
SEE ALSO
Alexandre Da Silva, "Mayor signs city transit bill," Honolulu Star-Bulletin, January 7, 2007.
Sen. Norman Sakamoto, Letter to the Editor "Salt Lake needs to speak up on rail route," Honolulu Advertiser, December 19, 2006.
Robert Shikina, "Council lobbied over ideal rail route," Honolulu Star-Bulletin, December 14, 2006. Contains Senator Sakamoto's testimony to the City Council.