Send them to New Orleans. On Fri, Apr 10, 2009 at 6:38 AM, Scott Raley <[email protected]> wrote:
> > Forward this to your local congress person to see if it motivates them > > -----Original Message----- > From: Jerry Johnson [mailto:[email protected]] > Sent: Thursday, April 09, 2009 9:04 PM > To: cf-community > Subject: Love it: Locals fix own road for free in 8 days. Was a $4 Million > 2 > year project. > > > http://www.cnn.com/2009/US/04/09/hawaii.volunteers.repair/index.html > > By Mallory Simon > CNN > > (CNN) -- Their livelihood was being threatened, and they were tired of > waiting for government help, so business owners and residents on > Hawaii's Kauai island pulled together and completed a $4 million > repair job to a state park -- for free. > > Volunteers bring in a heavy crane for work on a bridge to Polihale > State Park on Kauai last month. > > Polihale State Park has been closed since severe flooding destroyed an > access road to the park and damaged facilities in December. > > The state Department of Land and Natural Resources had estimated that > the damage would cost $4 million to fix, money the agency doesn't > have, according to a news release from department Chairwoman Laura > Thielen. > > "It would not have been open this summer, and it probably wouldn't be > open next summer," said Bruce Pleas, a local surfer who helped > organize the volunteers. "They said it would probably take two years. > And with the way they are cutting funds, we felt like they'd never get > the money to fix it." > > And if the repairs weren't made, some business owners faced the > possibility of having to shut down. > > Ivan Slack, co-owner of Napali Kayak, said his company relies solely > on revenue from kayak tours and needs the state park to be open to > operate. The company jumped in and donated resources because it knew > that without the repairs, Napali Kayak would be in financial trouble. > > "If the park is not open, it would be extreme for us, to say the > least," he said. "Bankruptcy would be imminent. How many years can you > be expected to continue operating, owning 15-passenger vans, $2 > million in insurance and a staff? For us, it was crucial, and our > survival was dependent on it. That park is the key to the sheer > survival of the business." > > So Slack, other business owners and residents made the decision not to > sit on their hands and wait for state money that many expected would > never come. Instead, they pulled together machinery and manpower and > hit the ground running March 23. Watch the volunteers repairing the > road > > > And after only eight days, all of the repairs were done, Pleas said. > It was a shockingly quick fix to a problem that may have taken much > longer if they waited for state money to funnel in. > > "We can wait around for the state or federal government to make this > move, or we can go out and do our part," Slack said. "Just like > everyone's sitting around waiting for a stimulus check, we were > waiting for this but decided we couldn't wait anymore." > > Thielen has been waiting, too. She wants the legislature to approve > her Recreation Renaissance project, a $240 million booster shot to > help fix parks across the state. Without it, at least five state parks > may be forced to close, and there would be no emergency repair money > to fix Polihale State Park. > > "We shouldn't have to do this, but when it gets to a state level, it > just gets so bureaucratic, something that took us eight days would > have taken them years," said Troy Martin of Martin Steel, who donated > machinery and steel for the repairs. "So we got together -- the > community -- and we got it done." See photos of the volunteers working > to repair the road > > > The park is a fixture on the west side of the island and a favorite > spot for many in the area, but it's also a hub for tourists. > > "Tourism is our lifeblood. It's what pays all of our bills," Slack > said. "The money that pours in comes from tourism is really an > important factor for everyone here in Hawaii, and it's such an > important time to encourage tourism." > > And it's an important time to keep jobs, which were threatened if the > park had to remain closed. In February, Kauai's unemployment rate was > at 9.1 percent, up from 2.8 percent during the same time in 2008, > according to Hawaii's Department of Labor. > > "I think it's crucial to say the doors are open, everyone is ready," > Slack said. "So when one of the most important parks in Hawaii is > closed, it really changes things." > > Now, because of their hard work, volunteers hope they'll be ready to > send that positive message -- right in time for the tourist season. > > Slack said he likes to have business up and running by April 15, and > the season gets busy around May 1. > > The business owners and residents are hopeful that their generous > contributions in time and resources mean the park should officially > open soon. Pleas says they have only to get the new bridge certified > and do minor cleanup. > > "A lot of people are quietly sitting by, waiting for it to open," > Slack said. "This really this is one of the nicest parks in the state > and in all of Hawaii, in the entire state parks department. Now, > hopefully, those people get their wish > > > > ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~| Adobe® ColdFusion® 8 software 8 is the most important and dramatic release to date Get the Free Trial http://ad.doubleclick.net/clk;207172674;29440083;f Archive: http://www.houseoffusion.com/groups/cf-community/message.cfm/messageid:294743 Subscription: http://www.houseoffusion.com/groups/cf-community/subscribe.cfm Unsubscribe: http://www.houseoffusion.com/cf_lists/unsubscribe.cfm?user=89.70.5
