Alarmed by photos on social media showing needles and other drug paraphernalia at a county soccer field, Mayor Harry Kim called emergency meetings of state and county officials, creating a task force to tackle the problem head-on.
The group, including island police, county parks personnel, county attorneys, homeless coordinators and state Division of Conservation and Resources Enforcement personnel, met Tuesday and again Wednesday to put the finishing touches on a plan of action.
One photo, posted by state Sen. Kai Kahele, D-Hilo, showed needles in the grass near what he described as the Hilo Bayfront soccer fields restroom. The photo was taken Monday and sent to him by a friend, he said.
The area is a known gathering and camping area for homeless individuals.
Kim said he also received reports about paraphernalia in homeless gathering spots in West Hawaii, including in parks and along Alii Drive. He said there have been no recent complaints about Old Kona Airport Park, where tent cities were cleared out last fall.
“This is not acceptable,” Kim said. “These are the community’s parks. You should respect them. You are endangering the lives of our most innocent — our children.”
Kahele, who has young children, was equally upset. He called it “ironic” that needles were discarded just 500 yards from the mayor’s office.
“Right in the heart of Hilo, where families gather, where people exercise, where kids play,” Kahele said. “It just hits home that there’s a crisis.”
Kahele praised the Kim administration for taking quick action.
Kim said people who come upon needles in public places should report them to the police, using the nonemergency number: 935-3311. Police dispatchers and parks personnel will keep records to pinpoint the problem areas.
Kahele said it goes beyond just enforcement to include help for addicted individuals who might be living on the streets.
“How do we meet with our community who is homeless, who are drug addicts,” Kahele asked. “Do we look the other way and pretend they’re not there?”
It’s not yet known if there’s been a recent spike in hard drug use on the island.
Illicit drug use in Hawaii self-reported in the prior month from 2013-14, the most current data available, among 18-25 year-olds was consistent with the national average of 6.58 percent of the population and among 26-plus-year-olds it also was consistent at 2.73 percent of the population, according to state Health Department data from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health.
The percentage of adults 18 to 49 years old reporting methamphetamine as their primary substance increased from 44.3 percent of those admitted for treatment in 2010 to 49.9 percent in 2014, according to the Health Department.
Kim said the county is researching how other locales use amnesty drop-off boxes for needles and sharps, installed in public places. That at least would keep them off the grass, he said.
“Our goal isn’t arrest and prosecution,” Kim said. “It’s a matter of keeping our parks safe and our facilities safe.”
Email Nancy Cook Lauer at ncook-lauer@westhawaiitoday.com.
Form yet another task force to do what? You already know the problem so what is it you’re trying to accomplish by creating another task force? What happened to your great Homless plan Harry, will Lance Niimi now be the “Needle” police? Harry Kim jumping from one thing to the next without solving anything.
Lying Harry only wastes taxpayer dollars, makes more problems and solves nothing while robbing taxpayers. Kahele sees the problem but refuses to acknowledge what causes it, corrupt demo rats wrongfully bleeding the last dollar out of our community then giving it to racists.
This really isn’t a homeless problem, it’s a case of addicts leaving their works around because they got high and forget what was going on. Having a place to deposit the needles is not going to change anything because people that are high on drugs are not going to act responsibly. How does anyone know it’s the homeless anyway? Could be any old addict that decided to shoot up. Might be someone that is diabetic. Might be a lot of things. A task force for what purpose? To determine that people use drugs? Unless you are going to lock up the dealers, nothing is going to change.
It certainly starts with the dealers.
How many of our little county parks along Route #11 are literally inhabited by drug dealers ?
Some little parks along the way can Not be Ever Used by the public … .they are covered campgrounds with toilets and an electric outlet and are permanent “head quarters” for dealing.
If I know about it…..who else does or should ?
It starts with the corrupt demo rats agenda that produced the problem to start with. Hopelessness that results in drug abuse.
Nothing like a lying potus hey???
This is directly due to the “war on drugs”
Get used to it being even worse with the donkey eared “cracker” AG that the orange haired baboon appointed.
You cannot “arrest” away this problem.
That all being said, you need to fear the drunk driver far more than a handful of needles left in a park.
But booze is legal.
Booze is bad but, if my kid steps on a beer can they won’t get aids or hepatitis. My kid steps on a needle chances increased very much. Fuck meth
I agree.
But the chances of your kid being killed by a drunk driver are far far better than them stepping on a needle.
And the meth problem today was started by the decades of marijuana eradication policies that were enacted under the same therory as we are now trying for meth.
So you may eradicate meth going forward but something far worse and cheaper will replace it.
And yet booze is legal.
Interesting theory that sounds good, but how do you explain the explosion in meth use in areas across the Country that don’t have marijuana eradication? Let’s all hope with Marijuana being socially accepted all these meth heads switch back to Marjuana. Not going to happen, it’s a individuals drug of choice and preferred high.
Agree too. The meth issue in Hawaii is due to marijuana eradication policies.
Elsewhere other issues have caused it. Namely, legal pharmaceuticals that get people hooked.
That being said, if we have learned anything in the last 50 years is that NO drug issue can be solved by arresting and putting offenders in jail.
What I’ve learned is never let Harry Kim try to address anything. This old man thinks by calling meetings and creating task force makes it appear he is doing something. No, he wants people to think he is when in reality he wants to create a group so he can tell his old dumb stories.
Totally agree with that too!
In addition to this State, by its own addiction to Federal money to start Green Harvest, directly caused today’s meth problem right here.
Further the County of Hawaii discourages its own police from arresting meth heads – by their “car allowance” policy. Who wants a meth head in the back seat of your Mustang GT?
But a pot head?
In the back buddy! You’re going to jail!
I know you want to believe that marijuana eradication is driving the meth use in Hawaii, but look at Colorado and you’ll find they have significant problems with meth and opioids. Scooby is right, it is more about a what a person’s drug of choice is.
I agree.
Colorado vs Hawaii are 2 different beasts however.
People are going to do drugs. Period.
Just as people are going to get drunk drive a car and kill.
My whole point is arresting people and building jails is not going to solve anything.
We are here – because of whats called “War on Drugs”
Doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results each time is the definition of insanity.
Needle DROP BOXES are another way of saying, Meth is All Right with us if you do it right.
It is acceptance of society to LIVE side by side with people who couldn’t care Less about the “communities” well being.
Where do you think the Money comes from for their daily Dose into their veins.
I don’t want to live in casual acceptance of Meth.
Needles are just ONE of the many disgusting and heartbreaking things felt in the wake of Drug Acceptance.
We don’t need to encourage it …. we need to prosecute and jail it.
Do you realize Hawaii’s meth problem started solely by marijuana eradication policies.
Again, you cannot arrest your way out of this problem.
If we are going to build endless prisons then we need to start with the drunk drivers.
This is what demo rats over tax and over spend agenda produces, homelessness, drug addicts and corrupt politicians along with hopelessness and poverty. Welcome to lying Harry and Bandit Ohara’s world of poverty Hilo.
Prohibition did not work. The war on drugs has not worked. Best bet is to make Fentanyl freely available. We get rid of the problem that way, they will all OD. I’m tired of trying to save people that really don’t care about themselves.
Our local politicians are just discovering this problem? Take a drive through Hilo on highway 19, past the band shell & the parks… Harry Kim is an incompetent bleeding heart liberal. And Kahele only seems to get active when he feels personally affected. Lucky we live Hawaii.
Demo rats like lying Harry just can not handel the truth and only make problems they created worse by squandering taxpayer dollars.
Interesting note:
Meth – is listed as a “Schedule 2” drug.
“Schedule II drugs, substances, or chemicals are defined as drugs with a
high potential for abuse, with use potentially leading to severe
psychological or physical dependence. These drugs are also considered
dangerous.”
Marijuana, on the other hand, now legal in 9 states and the District of Columbia, decriminalized in another 13 states, and medical marijuana is allowed in 29 states.
However, marijuana is STILL listed as a “Schedule 1” drug.
“Schedule I drugs, substances, or chemicals are defined as drugs with no
currently accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse.”
So, if there is any serious discussion to be had, meth needs to replace marijuana as a schedule 1 drug. Marijuana needs to be removed from any schedule and fully legalized in the exact same manner as alcohol is today.
And yet, MORE lives will be affected directly and indirectly – in a bad way – by fully legal booze over that of pot and meth – affecting lives – directly and indirectly combined.
To be totally serious – the real and logical discussion would be to make booze, tobacco and some guns flat out totally illegal – PERIOD.
Try that – see what happens.
And while pondering, keep in mind that the US Federal Government regulates the 3 biggest causes of human death.
It’s call ATF.
I think you should have some homeless people on the task force too. Until you include everyone you won’t be getting the full picture.