WANT TO SEE SOMETHING REALLY SCARY?
HERE'S HOW HAWAI`I TREATS HAWAIIANS - PART THREE
By Will Hoover - The Honolulu Advertiser
Why is Wai`anae's homeless problem so acute at a time when Hawai`i is enjoying the nation's lowest unemployment rate and a booming economy?
The reasons are numerous, Placencia said. For example, as the homeless have been hustled out of one area — such as after the nightly closing of Ala Moana Beach Park — some have migrated to Wai`anae.
A bigger part of the problem is the collapse of the "hidden homeless" safety net — brought on in part by the housing boom, she said.
"Hidden homeless" (folks who move in temporarily with relatives or friends and avoid being listed as homeless) have been edged out of Hawai`i's red-hot housing market by higher rent prices and a decreasing number of rental units, Placencia said.
"The hidden homeless are no longer hidden," she said.
A case in point is Nolalea Noland, 49, who until about a year ago was renting a one-room apartment with a toilet for $250 a month. When the rent jumped to $450, Noland, who lives on a fixed income, ended up on the street.
"It's not easy living out here," said Noland, who for the past few months has been camped in a tent at Ma`ili Beach Park with her poi dog, Kinipopo.
She said police visit the camp regularly — particularly on Wednesdays and Thursdays when camping is not permitted on any O'ahu beaches — and issue citations.
"I myself have had three tickets," she said. "The first was dismissed, and I'm fighting the other two."
Noland said she doesn't drink or do drugs, but she said she has not been able to work because she has cancer. She has no living relatives in Hawai`i to stay with, she said.
"Everybody here's homeless," said Noland, motioning toward some five dozen tents lining a quarter-mile grassy stretch. "And, I'd say it's got a lot worse the last few months.
"Why? Because rents are so high. People can't make ends meet."
The Conclusion Soon...
