Ask the Mayor: Did Monsanto Donate Land for Police Station?

The mayor answers questions from the public in this series.

By Mayor Alan Arakawa

Dear Mayor,

Q: I bought some hapu‘u logs for my orchids a couple months ago, but I heard that some of the logs might have been infested with ants. How should I check for the ants, and what do I do if I find any?

A: If you bought the hapu‘u within the past 12 months, the state Dept. of Agriculture is recommending that you check for the little fire ant by putting peanut butter on a chopstick and inserting the chopstick into the ground, with the peanut butter end on the fern. If you see ants on the chopstick, put the chopstick and any ants into a sealable plastic bag and place the bag in the freezer. Call the Dept. of Agriculture at ph. 872-3843, and an inspector will be sent to determine whether the ants are little fire ants, which are extremely small (less than 1/16th of an inch long) but pack a very painful bite.

Kīhei Police Station. Photo by Wendy Osher.

Q: We have heard rumors that Monsanto donated the land upon which the new police station in Kihei was built. Is this true? By the way, we toured that beautiful building and were very impressed.

A: No, Monsanto did not donate land for the police station in Kihei. According to our capital improvements project coordinator, the county purchased the 150-acre parcel for a park in 1994 from Haleakala Ranch at a cost of $2.1 million. Monsanto dedicated land for an easement and a pipeline to carry R-1 water from the county system across Monsanto property to the Kihei Police Station.

Q: As a long-time resident and frequent user of many of the pools on Maui, I would like to know why all the pools do not seem to have a minimum standardized water temperature. For years the Kihei Aquatic Center’s 50-meter pool had a comfortable winter temperature of 80 degrees. Now that there is a new head pool lifeguard, the temperature is being kept at 76 to 78 degrees, which has discouraged many of the residents to quit (*continue? -Ed.) their winter swimming. This seems unfair that the pool temperatures are left up to the head lifeguard. Why are pool temperatures not standardized by the County on Maui?

A: According to our Parks and Recreation Aquatics staff, the temperatures at all county pools are kept between 79 & 80 degrees. During the mid-day hours it may rise even higher. However, there will be days when equipment malfunctions and the heater may be down for several days until parts can be obtained. The boilers are regulated by temperature controls, so as soon as the pool hits 80 the system shuts off. Our senior lifeguards are told that only the pump mechanic is authorized to access the boiler controls to make temperature adjustments. Our Aquatics staff will check into your comment about the Kihei pool’s temperature.

Want to Ask the Mayor?

Submit your questions about County of Maui programs, services, operations or policies to Mayor Alan Arakawa via email: AskTheMayor@mauicounty.gov, phone: 270-7855 or mail: 200 S. High Street, 9th Floor, Wailuku, Hawaii 96793. Questions submitted will be considered for inclusion in the Ask the Mayor column.