Windward residents lay foundations to fight crime, restore Heeia harbor

KANEOHE—Criticizing the government seems to always follow a similar circuit: As citizens, we can participate in the blame game or we adopt the “if-you-want-something-done-right-do-it-yourself” mentality. Inevitably, it all leads back to a call for more community action on a local, person-to-person level.

And it’s not that the talk isn’t meaningful, it’s just that too often, talk doesn’t yield action.

Art Machado, a community activist in Kahaluu, agreed.

“We just don’t have enough people in the community getting out to do good things,” Machado said. “Too often I get people complaining, but if you ask for a resolution, for their insight to help us, they don’t know. You ask for help, and they’re too busy.”

Lately, however, there’s been a lot less talk and more action happening on the Windward side. Here are two groups who are taking public services into their own hands.

First, the Kahaluu Coalition to Stop Drugs in Our Area, which Machado recently organized.

On daily walks around Kahaluu, Machado began noticing clusters of children and bikes at a banyan tree outside 7-Eleven.

“They’re using kids to make deliveries on bikes,” Machado observed. He actually stopped one boy on a bike, around 16 years old, and asked him what he was doing.

“He knew he was delivering drugs,” Machado said. “He said he came from a family of eight, and he was the oldest. [He was taken care of by] a single mom working two or three jobs, and he was using the money to help support the family. We’ve got to put a stop to it.”

The Kahaluu Coalition’s goal is to find a way for families to support themselves that doesn’t require children to deliver drugs—a slippery slope, considering most industries promote from the inside. The idea is to approach it as a community and find ways to divert kids from signing up, rather than treating them as criminals.

Machado called the narcotics division of the Honolulu Police Department to notify them of the problem. They were, unfortunately, unavailable for media comment. He then canvassed the community, gathering around 100 people for a community meeting, where the conclusion was reached that something had to be done, but with sensitivity to the ties between people in the community.

“No one wanted to take the approach of ratting out names to police,” Machado said. “So we’ve formed a community security watch base.”

The group meets every first Monday to get updated on the problem and respond accordingly.

“These guys don’t go away,” said Machado. “They’re constantly moving.”

The community watch group covers an area that spans from Waimanalo to Heeia. An initial walk-through of Kahaluu Beach Park with the HPD yielded eight arrests. Citizens are instructed not to interfere with a situation when witnessed, they are mandated to call the police.

Another situation occurred at Pau Hana, where leaders of afterschool activities began noticing drug use in the parks. It got to the point where coaches had to begin escorting children to use the bathroom.

“The Pau Hana coaches got involved, the parents got involved,” Machado said. ‘We found 29 pockets in the bush where there was evidence the drug people were using them as hideouts. But once the community was there cleaning and putting pressure, they left.”

At this point, one might feel inclined to criticize the government. Machado had a word for that as well.

“We cannot blame the police,” he said. “I’ve worked with the police for years. I get to know the officers. According to the Mayor or [Honolulu Police Chief Louis Kealoha], the HPD is understaffed by 210 officers. From the Waimanalo lighthouse to Heeia, we’ve got nine officers on duty. Two guys have to stay in the station—that takes it down to seven. Count in vacation, sick leave. There’s no ifs or buts, it’s the real world. On an average day we have five maybe four. When there’s an accident, they converge on the accident. These guys are stretched so thin. And for a drug call, they have to catch them in the act. It takes surveillance. The procedure is really not a police problem. It’s a narcotics division problem. What we need is more community activity—people stepping up, forming a group. If not, it cannot be handled.”

An HPD community liaison works in tandem with Machado’s group, as well as a second community policing group that has recently sprung up.

The Heeia Pier Community Watch was established to deter illegal activities from Heeia Small Boat Harbor. “[HPD] were excellent for support,” said volunteer Anita Balch.

The police showed up to the Watch’s first meeting in full force, Balch said.

Other attendees at the 60-strong meeting included boat-owners, bay enthusiasts, and representatives from Kaneohe’s Marine Corps Base, the Coast Guard Auxiliary, the Kaneohe Bay Regional Council, and DOCARE.

Balch did the legwork of letter-writing and organizing, but insists it took the community buy-in to make the Watch happen. They meet on the second Tuesday of each month at 6:30 p.m. at the pier, wearing the official yellow community police action t-shirts.

“I know it’s necessary,” Balch said. “Just several years ago, a number of boats got hit in one night.”

Balch, who has had a boat in a slip at the harbor since 1994, lost over $1,000 in gear.

“I started checking on my boat three times a day,” she said. “Late at night I’d see activity that I didn’t think was good for the harbor. They’ve had enough problems. I’m not going in there alone.”

Only one of the harbor’s four rows has gates blocking the entrance.

The docks have long been known to be sites of suspicious activity, crime, theft and drug use. Lawmakers have taken steps to remedy the problem, such as making it illegal to live aboard a boat at a state harbor, but the docks are largely unpopulated at night, as state-employed harbormasters are not scheduled on 24-hour shifts.

Still, Balch said: “It’s not near as bad as it used to be because of community interest. With the Pier Watch, everybody knows who to call at any time. We are the eyes and ears. It’s just educating everybody to keep their eyes out. Even that, I can tell, is diverting some action that has no business there. I can already tell you it’s a cleaner, better harbor than three months ago. We have a very good showing. Now the hard work starts.”

The community support for the harbor goes farther than just vigilance, as last Saturday a harbor repair and clean-up day was attended by the Lion’s club, the harbormaster, state engineers, the Pier Watch, and more, where they filled holes, poured concrete, and worked on deteriorated areas.

“It saved the state a lot of money,” Balch said. “We’re all volunteers.”

And so it goes that when the going gets tough, the community rises to its priorities.

“It’s just a group of people who care about the Bay who are stepping up,” said Balch.

Machado concurred: “We need the community’s support.”