Last week, Mayor Kirk Caldwell proposed a bill that would prohibit people from sitting or lying on public sidewalks in Waikiki. Impressed by this idea, City Councilwoman Carol, Fukunaga has proposed Honolulu City Council Bill 45 which would make sitting and lying on public sidewalks also illegal in the downtown Honolulu neighborhood, specifically from Chinatown to Ward Avenue in Kakaako. Fukunaga stated that her constituents complain to her office daily about people lying or sitting on the sidewalks, blocking pedestrian access. Fukunaga commented, "This is a big problem that has affected businesses and their ability to function in the manner that their businesses were intended." Similar laws were passed in Seattle and San Francisco and were deemed to be constitutional.
If both bills are passed, it is predicted that the homeless could be forced to relocate to other nearby neighborhoods like Ala Moana, McCully and Moiliili.
Source: Honolulu Star Advertiser, 6-21-2014, www.staradvertiser.com
Posted by Jeff Uyemura-Reyes, Principal Broker, REALTOR®
Global Executive Realty, LLC
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