Government Needs To Address Dire Lack Of Affordable Housing.
I see them all the time, at parks, beaches and bus stops with their huge bags and grocery carts.
There are more than 3,000 homeless people living on O`ahu alone, and these numbers don't seem to be decreasing.
There are also huge amounts of people living in poverty and who are on the verge of becoming homeless. The lack of affordable housing has become a major issue for these people.
I know of a family of nine that had applied for and were accepted for Section 8 rental assistance.
Today - a year and two months later- they are still waiting for assistance.
They are still on the A list (first priority), but they have not been awarded the assistance yet. They have been told they may receive notice of the funds being available tomorrow, or next year, maybe even five years from now.
Families like these are faced with the possibility of becoming homeless.
As I see more and more apartment buildings being made with rents that often run about $4,000 a month per apartment, I wonder if the government is aware of how many people in Hawai`i are in desperate need of affordable housing.
How is it possible to have a sustainable life without a home?
How is it possible to have a sustainable Hawai`i if there are growing amounts of people without a place to live?
The sooner the government deals with the problem at hand, the more sustainable Hawai`i will become.
Marcela Gamboa
Kalani High School, Grade 11
